Three Oaths
by mspotts
Summary: Returning from the past with an oath to never go back, Kagome finds that revelations concerning her and two other priestesses may alter her way of life forever. Warnings for character death in later chapters.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: this is a fictional story written only for my personal amusement. I own nothing, Rumiko Takahashi owns all.**

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The Creator

The surrounding woodland was eerily calm. Rustling leaves tossed about by the wind remained unseen in the semi-dark of the night, but her sharp ears caught the sound of their movement as she walked hurriedly through the forest.

She was tense. Too tense to think sensible thoughts that might help get her out of the mess she was in. Too tense to devise a plan or think of anything other than pure anger. She shivered and increased her pace, then stopped, gasping when the pain in her leg shot up through her body. For a moment, she lay down to inspect the wound. _Eurgh._ The sight of it made her wince with disgust.

The wide pus-filled cavern stank like rotting corpses. Beside it, a meaty graze where her skin had been shredded open began to bleed freely down her inner leg. With quick efficiency, she wrapped the borrowed shawl tight around her wounded thigh. _Thank Kami for Kaede!_ She thought. Over the past few weeks the aged priestess had been more than helpful in providing food and care for her wounds. Without her aid she would have surely been dead long before now. Either that, or trapped in a stone dungeon somewhere as a life-long prisoner. She prayed that Kaede had managed to stay alive and hopefully unhurt, though the chances of her survival were unlikely, especially since anyone even remotely connected to her would have been targeted. _And if she is dead, the blame will rest on my shoulders for involving her in the first place._

Sighing, she gazed out ahead and tried to picture the distance she had left to go. The well portal she'd heard about couldn't be too far away now; she'd already been walking for almost an hour. Hopefully, without any delays she would be over the side and away from this wretched nightmare she'd started. _That's the worst part of all_, she thought bitterly. _I was the one who brought this on myself_.

A sound caught her attention and drew her from her musings. She looked around; seeing nothing strange but not quite ready to dismiss the feelings of unease she felt. Paranoia or premonition? She wondered, instinctively reaching behind for some arrows. Stupid really, her bow and arrows had all been destroyed weeks ago in a huge raid. The sudden memory brought tears to her eyes. That bow had been with her since the start of her priestess apprenticeship many, many years ago. It was the first gift she'd ever received from anyone in her life. It had been passed down for generations from teacher to pupil, teacher to pupil, until finally her instructor bestowed it upon her. She'd promised to keep it with her always, a promise she'd managed to keep dutifully for countless years only to be broken in what should have been an easy battle, that had turned quickly into a vicious struggle for her life…

"Ah!" She gasped in shock, feeling a familiar evil aura surround her like a heavy cloak. An icy chill appeared at her back prickling her already sensitive nerves.

She tensed and looked around. The clearing was surrounded by trees with only one visible exit: the pathway to the well. Ignoring the painful jilt of her knee as she stood, she rushed forward running blindly towards it as fast as she could. _What -?!_ Twisted vines leapt to close the way, but she brushed past them desperately, ignoring the thorns as they tore through flesh. Her anger had now turned into unbridled panic. After all, she knew only one who would chase her so persistently…

_Woooosshhh! _

Before she could react, a huge gust of supernatural wind picked her up and slammed her forcefully to the ground.

"Shit!"

Jerkily she opened her eyes and tried to get up. The gale had spared few parts of her already battered body, leaving her leg in such a mangled state she couldn't stand for more than two seconds without falling. _Damn him!_ She clenched her bruised fists, feeling a mixture of fear and fury at her persecutor. She could imagine he was hidden somewhere in the bushes, watching her with that dazzling sadistic smile…

"Show yourself, you coward!" she yelled furiously in to the darkness.

As if she had summoned him, he appeared, gracefully drifting towards her like the demon he was. Only half demon, she reminded herself, then instantly felt foolish. It wasn't as if it made a difference anyway. He was far more powerful than plenty other full demons she knew. The hairs on the back of her neck pricked up as he approached her. _Steady,_ she warned herself. _Be wary of him at all times_.

Unwilling to look him in the eye, she stared instead at his feet, and suddenly realised that the white specked baboon robe had gone; this time she saw him dressed in elaborate purple silk. _Beautiful_, she thought, instantly hating herself for thinking it. It would always annoy her that he was so good looking. She knew that he would be forever attractive to her and many others too, no matter what he did.

It was only then that she grasped that he was standing in the middle of the pathway. Blocking her escape in the way his thorny creepers had not been able to.

"I am no coward." He stopped, standing directly before her, closer than most would dare knowing who she was. Ordinarily she would have flinched from such close proximity, but now she felt only a strong urge to lash out at him and destroy him from all existence. Her body trembled with the effort of not looking up. _It shouldn't be this hard,_ she thought angrily. _He's only one man!_

His pale hand reached out and gently cupped her face. "Poor creature," he whispered, wiping off dirt with his thumb. She knew the gentleness was a trick. His entire appearance was a trick to keep her at ease. But even she knew that kindness after endless despair was impossible to ignore. Against all reason, she felt herself warming to the gentle feel of his hands across her face. His unmarred palm was soft against her bruised skin and without thinking, she leaned into him. In a second, his other hand had grabbed a fistful of her hair and he yanked it, making her howl in pain.

"Look at me."

His grip on her jaw suddenly became painful. He wouldn't force her to look at him; she knew that wasn't his way. He would make it so that it was her choice. Grimacing, she looked up and caught sight of herself in his black eyes. The numerous cuts and scars couldn't hide the lovely, bright skin that glowed, or the brightness of her blue eyes. It seemed that no matter how hard he tried, she thought, her beauty would remain visible. Her sight turned outwards and she saw his face clearly for the first time. A whitish mist had mysteriously emerged behind him, thickening the murky air with a foul smell. In contrast, he looked exquisite.

Without a doubt, he was the most striking person she had ever met in her life. _There's something about the way that he looks at you,_ she thought, dazed, _as if he knows exactly what you're thinking_. Inwardly, she groaned. He had made her completely helpless with just one look. _I never used to be this weak! What has he done to me?!_

He released his hand from her face and she stepped back, desperate for a breath of normal air. She flicked a tentative glance in his direction and was shocked to see him crouched low, panting as if in pain. Beneath the screen of his long, dark hair, black eyes stared at her with ruthless venom. _What did I do?_ She wondered, and then with sudden clarity, looked down at her neck to see the Shikon No Tama glowing a fierce blue. It defended me, she realised, reaching for it and clasping it firmly between two of her fingers.

_He only wants the Shikon No Tama._

It was a fact that she already knew, but one that still managed to hurt her every time she thought of it. If she were a stronger priestess, she thought sadly, this would never have happened to her. _If only she didn't love him…_

The wind picked up once again and slammed into her full force. She stumbled and fell over, slipping on several torn down branches. As she recovered, she felt the sudden presence of many demons approaching the area. She was surrounded.

"Don't think that you can run from me!" he shouted, and as she watched, his body grew and contorted into a beastly black figure with large pincers growing off the edge of his torso. His human blood had been completely consumed by his inner demons, and all that remained was a power-hungry creature designed to kill.

_How could she love this BEAST??_

She could see them now, the other demons, lingering on the outer edge of the clearing. They were too scared of him to attack her, but were contented to wait and see if they could salvage any remains of the Shikon from her when he was finished.

What a repulsive race.

Preparing herself for another blow, she stepped back with her weaker leg and placed two arms in front of her. Slowly she whispered a deflective charm under her breath as she felt the final dregs of her powers being used up. Through the gap in her fingers she could see his mild amusement at her feeble form of protection. "Is that the best you can do?" His small teasing smile was like a stab in the heart. The simple attraction she felt from his mocking eyes was unforgivable.

A sudden temptation to draw back and attack instead of defending became almost unbearable to suppress. Somehow, she refused to react, and managed to hold strong even when at the completion of her barrier, he laughed mockingly at her.

"Give me the Shikon and I will spare you your life."

She laughed with crazed delight at his words. What kind of bargain was that? They both knew that there would be no life for her without it.

"No." she replied, and pushed all her energy into her little barrier. She was entirely surrounded, but she knew that if she could get past him, the barrier would keep all others from attacking. Her eyes scanned the ground for anything resembling a weapon. She saw a stick and grabbed it, just as a tentacle reached out for her. She swerved, dodging it, but was caught by a second one moving faster than the first.

"AAhhhhhhh-!"

Caught in his grasp, she was unable to move at all. The pincer tightened around her neck, cutting off her air supply. _No!_ She thought, frantically struggling to free herself. _I won't die this way!_ In panic, she stared up into his black eyes and saw her future written there. _"It's too late for you now."_ They seemed to say.

_Too late…_she repeated, hearing the words resound in her head. _It's too late for us now…_

Without warning, a bright flash of blue light, blasted out from the jewel. It scorched him and he cried out in agony, releasing his hold on her neck. She fell hard, but could only feel the gorgeous bliss of fresh air flowing through her lungs. She gasped for a while, tears streaming down her face, and then eventually tried to sit up.

Glancing at him, she could see that the jewel had purified at least five of his numerous tentacles and destroyed a large section of his torso. His gorgeous face was contorted into a wholly demonic expression of pure _rage_. She stared without interest, her eyes tracing the delicately formed features that represented all he was. _Naraku._ A literal devil incarnate roaming free in the world, wreaking havoc and despair and death. Life and love meant little to him, and only as tools for more destruction.

Slowly she got up on unsteady legs. Taking careful, practised steps, it appeared she could walk without falling down. _Maybe the jewel healed me as well, _she wondered. Quickly she picked the Shikon up from the ground where it had fallen.Looking behind her, she could see Naraku's mangled form sizzling from the after-effects of the purification. She felt nothing for him now, only the desire to leave and be safe was giving her the strength to walk. In front of her, the lesser demons sprang to life. Oh god, she groaned. Luckily for her, her barrier was still intact, and she brushed past them, ignoring their screams as they died.

It seemed fate was truly on her side. The Bone Eater's Well wasn't far away at all; it was only several metres away, almost hidden beneath some tangled vines and weeds. She smiled joyfully. For freedom, the portal was the key. She stumbled towards it, leaving floods of agonised howls in her wake. Nearing the well, she noticed that a strange object was leaning at the well's edge, propped up beside it. As she got closer, she saw that it was a mossy, faded-pink contraption with two wheels on either end. A few words were scribbled in scrawled handwriting down the side. _'To Kagome, love Mom'_. She stared curiously at it. For some reason, she felt as if she'd heard that name somewhere before. _Kagome…who is Kagome? _She wondered, slowly repeating the name again and again in her head. It was so familiar, and for the life of her, she couldn't remember why.

A sudden flashback of a pretty black haired girl wearing indecent clothing filled her mind. Ah…Now she remembered. Kagome was the girl with that inu-hanyou boy. She'd seen them, quite often actually, a small group of three young humans and three demons travelling throughout Edo. She knew that they were searching for the broken shards of that _other_ jewel, but for the life of her she couldn't understand how such a group had come to be. Weren't demons the natural enemy of humans? And how a hanyou had come into existence at all was totally beyond her.

But, she considered, they certainly didn't lack strength. For a small party of somewhat random warriors to have survived so long was an incredible feat. Sometimes she'd seen them opposing enemies that were far beyond them in power, numbers and ability, yet still they emerged victorious. And at others, their task had been near impossible to complete, and only the fear of exposing herself after so long had kept her from assisting them, which was strange enough in itself. Though in the end, she thought, they always seemed to do all right on their own. Even going so far as to injure Naraku enough to take back the false shards he'd managed to collect. She wondered briefly if the 'jewel' they sought had ever been completed. _What a surprise for them when they found out there would be no wish._

A cutting pain in her side diverted her thoughts. Gasping heavily, she only just managed to stop herself form falling down. _Come on, come on! _She told herself,_ almost there! _

From behind her, she heard a last deafening cry as Naraku's withered body was finally destroyed. She felt herself smile. _'The bastard deserves everything he gets'_. Feeling faint, and more than a little dizzy, she gazed at the bicycle one last time before hefting herself up over the well's rim. Gravity seized her mass and drew her down, pulling her into its depths. Sensing the well's magic working on her body, she closed her eyes and relaxed.

_It's finally over. I can't believe it……_

She allowed the darkness to take her, hearing Kaede's final words echoing throughout her mind.

"_You will have your freedom, my lady... and you will be safe, both you and the Shikon No Tama."_

"_Safe…" _she said, her lips barely moving.

_Safe…at last…_

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	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: this is a fictional story written only for my personal amusement. I own nothing, Rumiko Takahashi owns all.**

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The Creator Part II

For the third time that day, the chicken was burning.

"Mom, will you please get the chicken!" she screamed, walking away from the smoke-filled kitchen. Kagome sighed, hearing no reply from her mother and knew that it would be instant noodles for her tonight.

"As I was saying…" continued the voice on the other end of the line.

Kagome snapped back to reality. "Of course, Hojo, go on."

Naturally Hojo complied, and while he continued to ramble on about their next trip to the Art Museum, Kagome balanced the cordless phone in her hand and let her mind wander.

_Why can't I adjust to my old life?_

Kagome sighed, wishing she had the answer but knew that she was unable to find out. Idly, she fingered the silver chain around her neck where the sparkling Shikon now lay. She could still clearly visualise the wonderful day when they'd pieced together all the jewel shards. After a long string of seemingly endless battles with Naraku's evil demons, Naraku had been too injured to continue fighting them and he'd retreated, leaving behind the final pieces of the jewel.

"Ha!" Inuyasha had cried, holding up one glinting pink shard. "Told ya we'd do it!"

The memory brought a smile to her lips. She remembered the day as being one without worries or fears. Their success had been a cause for great celebration in Kaede's village and there had been a large party to honour the occasion. Sango and Miroku had spent the entire night together, and had emerged from a villager's house the next morning with embarrassed, smiling faces. Even Shippo and Kirara were included; both of them getting so hyped up with wine they had to be sent to bed early.

"But I don't wanna go!" Shippo whined pitifully, draining his last cup.

"Quiet! Now go to bed." Kaede snapped, looking over at Kirara. "And that goes for you too!"

Inuyasha had sat out most of the celebrations, his excuse being that he had enough demon blood in him to avoid degrading himself by prancing around with a bunch of weak humans. Yet somehow, after endless pleading, she'd gotten him to dance the waltz with her. Out on the grassy floor he couldn't help looking awkward; normally used to great bounding strides during battles, the small steps needed to waltz were too hard for him to manage. Not wanting to make him look silly, she deliberately stepped on his toes and messed up the steps, earning herself several shouts of, "Hey, watch it! You're not light you know!"

They had many laughs that night. But much later, after most of the festivities had ended, they left the party together to sit over by the hill. Alone.

It had been a full moon that night, she remembered wistfully, and Kikyo hadn't been seen for months. She'd been so hopeful and expecting of his love, that when he merely remarked how stupid she was for breaking the jewel in the first place, she burst into tears.

"Hey!?" His eyes widened in obvious fear. "What's the matter with you?"

But she refused to tell him. "Nothing, Inuyasha," She managed a brief smile. "I'm just so…happy, that's all." He sniffed uncertainly, then shrugged and left it at that. Her delicate heart dropped like a stone. Even she knew that if it had been Kikyo sobbing fretfully in front of him, he would have given a more concerned reaction.

After that, she swore to stop loving him, even if it meant leaving her friends in the Past and never seeing any of them again. _After all_, she thought, shoving her clothes into her overlarge yellow backpack. _There's nothing more damning than an unrequited love._

The day she left was one of the saddest days of her short life. All four of them had tried to put her off leaving, even making remarks such as 'But who will give me crayons and play with me?' and 'Please stay. You know I will never find a better place for my cursed hand than your as…' At which point Sango had slapped him in fury.

It had been Sango's idea that Kagome should keep the jewel. "Go on," she'd said. "It's safer off with you in your time anyway." Kagome had mumbled incoherent thanks, while Inuyasha complained over her voice that things in the future - like curry for example! - could be just as dangerous as things in the Feudal Era.

Finally it was time to go. Kagome looked at Inuyasha and waited. He cleared his throat.

"I guess this is goodbye." His voice sounded even rougher than usual, and she smiled sweetly, wanting to keep that boyish image of him always. "Goodbye, Inuyasha," she whispered. Then she'd jumped down the well to her Time where she belonged.

That day and several days after that, she'd spent hours on end sobbing uncontrollably in her bedroom. Despite her mother's attempts to soothe her she was inconsolable. All she wanted was to go back and see them, see _him_! But for her sake she knew, she couldn't. The longer she stayed there the harder it would have eventually been to come back. After all Kagome didn't belong in the Past, she belonged in the Future. And as long as Inuyasha didn't want her then there was nothing keeping her there either.

Every day since she returned felt like a sentence from hell. Her mind was constantly filled with endless memories of what she'd lost. There would be no more instant noodles over the camp fire, no more baths in the hot-springs, no more exciting battles with deadly monsters, no white haired half-boy there to defend her ……Her family and friends were always there for her, but adjusting back to her old life was still a struggle. Especially since she was the only one who really knew what she'd been through. Although her family were fully aware of her double life in the Past, they only knew the things she told them. They could never fully understand the experience of mixing with creatures so alien to humans, yet similar in so many ways. Kagome could only imagine what her grandfather would have thought of her rubbing shoulders with Sesshomaru, one of the strongest demons of all time.

It was a life beyond description, one that only she knew. And the knowledge that she was alone only strengthened her resolve to re-adjust. Eventually she was able to live normally, attending school as usual without the constant leaves of absences due to severe, chronic illness. She continued her life as it should have been even though it was dull and lacklustre. Things she'd once cared about just didn't seem important anymore. _Like shopping with Eri and Yuka, eurgh!_ The thought made her grimace. Nothing in the world seemed like a worse punishment than that. Still, she had to try and _appear_ normal. She'd promised herself that she would never run back to the past, no matter how bad things got.

Of course, that should have been simple enough. Go to school, learn some stuff, meet up with her friends, go on dates, baby-sit Souta…and do all those other meaningless things that made up her teenage life. It should have been easy, but by now Kagome knew that her life, either in the past or future, was predestined to be anything but easy.

A loud shriek erupted from the kitchen as her mother finally attended the burning meal. Kagome sighed with sincere feeling. Instant noodles never seemed to taste as good anymore when they were cooked on a proper stove.

_JJJIIZZZZIIHHH!!_

"Huh-?!" Kagome stilled, and abruptly dropped the phone from her shaking hand. Ignoring Hojo's nattering from the other end, she tried to concentrate on the feeling she'd just felt. _Strange. It felt like the portal from the well…_ she wondered.

Briskly kicking the phone aside, she ran outside as fast as she could, sweeping past her grandfather and nearly toppling him over. Her heart was beating faster and faster with each step and without realising it, she'd begun to hope that it was a certain someone returning to her at last…a prayer resounded clearly in her brain. _Please let it be him! Oh, please…_

She stopped running and instantly the large spirit energy coming from the well-house washed over her. She hesitated for a moment and then pushed open the door and stumbled inside. "Hello?" she called, taking a few tentative steps. "Inuyasha is that you??"

Something gave a low moan from somewhere to her left and she turned towards the sound. A figure lay crumpled on the floor, barely moving, with one arm outstretched, as if reaching for something. The body wasn't big enough to be a man and seemed to be dressed in tattered dark clothing. To Kagome's horror, she realised that an alarming amount of blood was gushing out from a deep gash in her leg.

"Oh, my God!"

She closed her eyes, wildly wondering what to do, while firmly squashing the disappointed cries echoing in her mind. Kagome was hardly much bigger than the woman and her injuries were too severe to drag her along alone. She would have to get help. But from who? Her family were hardly the most efficient of people and they would surely ask questions...

_I'll worry later. Right now she needs help!_

"Mom, Grandpa!" she screamed. "I need your help! It's an emergency!"

Hearing the distant patter of their footsteps, Kagome knelt beside the woman and swept her dark hair away from her face. The skin beneath it was milky white, soft and smooth. The only blemish Kagome could see was a dark red streak beneath her hairline where she'd obviously been hurt.

She reached out and grabbed the woman's pale wrist. Her heartbeat was ragged but strong. "Excuse me," despite the urgency of the occasion, Kagome couldn't forsake her manners, "If you can hear me, please squeeze my hand." She whispered firmly. Kagome shifted as the woman gave a feeble lurch. Her hand unclenched, and a small, glowing blue ball dropped out and rolled on the floor. Kagome stared in frozen shock as the Shikon No Tama rolled dangerously away from her. The intensity of its radiance was enthralling_. What in the world…?'_

In a slight daze, she barely noticed as her family suddenly materialized behind her.

"Kagome!" Her mother appeared at the doorway, panting viciously and looking absolutely terrified. Loud wheezing intensified as the person got closer, and then finally her grandfather also appeared in view. "What's the matter? Why were you screaming? We've come to help- Oh my!" her mother exclaimed, finally noticing the growing pool of blood on the wooden floor.

"Eh? What's wrong with you, Mikoumi- Ah!!" Her grandfather jumped in surprise as he too caught a glimpse of the injured woman. Kagome resisted rolling her eyes.

"Is she dead?" Her mother whispered almost inaudibly, her wide eyes fixed on the woman. Immediately Kagome felt a twinge of guilt. Her mother shouldn't have ever had to see the gruesome reality of feudal era life. It was easy enough to accept from a blind distance, safe from the bloody truth. But from up close… she suddenly wondered if the sight of a near-dead woman had brought back memories of her father's terrible death, many years before. "Not dead yet," Kagome replied gently, conscious of the fact that with every passing second her statement was close to becoming false. "But she will be if we don't help her right now."

Hearing another groan from the injured priestess, Kagome stood quickly.

"What are you doing?" Mikoumi asked, voice trembling.

"Err, I'm just…" Kagome walked to the corner and knelt abruptly. _There it is!_ Her hand snatched up the blue Shikon before it could roll completely out of sight. _I'll figure this out later_, she thought, stuffing it into the pocket of her jeans. The dark material glowed faintly.

"Okay let's take her into the house."

Carefully, she hoisted both legs in her arms then signalled for help. Her grandfather leapt up immediately and took hold of the woman's upper body. Mikoumi remained standing in the doorway, watching the scene with her mouth slightly open. "Okay then, mom," Kagome said quickly, "You can help us with the doors." Her mother simply stared at her, and Kagome was abruptly aware that some of the blood had smeared onto her own clothes, only further adding to her mother's distress.

Like some kind of comical procession, they walked slowly towards the main house. Her mother trailed alongside them, dispassionately gazing at everything apart from the awkward scene beside her. Kagome was struck by how deeply the sight of blood – or was it death? – had disturbed her. _Poor mom._ She had never before realised that her father's death had affect her so strongly. _Good thing she never saw me injured_, she thought, quickly dodging the small form of Bouyo as he crawled by her feet. As they entered the house, Kagome considered taking her to rest upstairs, but realised they wouldn't be able to manage it.

"We'll just leave her on the sofa, okay?" Over-exerted with the effort of lugging the woman's body, her grandfather could do no more than nod his head, puffing his cheeks with each breath. They laid her down, tenderly arranging her limbs so that they wouldn't receive any extra damage and Kagome quickly found a towel and some bandages to stop her from losing anymore blood.

With most of the woman's injuries well covered up, Mikoumi suddenly became herself again, apologising profusely for being so unhelpful. "Mom, it's fine." Kagome said, "But if you really want to help, make sure Souta doesn't come in here. I don't think he should see this."

"Of course," her mother replied, giving Kagome a small smile before hurriedly dashing off, her grandfather following slowly behind. Relieved that her mother had left at last, Kagome sat down on a cushion beside the sofa. She stared at the beautiful face, elegant even in sleep.

_Who are you?_ Kagome thought, brushing the woman's hair aside to see more clearly. Gently curving nose, pretty mouth, smooth pale skin…_she's like some princess straight out of a fairytale_. She eyed the woman's perfect Japanese features with more than a hint of jealousy. They reminded her of Kikyo and how, un-dead though she was, neither Inuyasha nor Naraku had managed to resist her charms. It also made her think of her own face; although Sango had once said she possessed an 'innocent charm' that guys like Kouga seemed to fall for, she knew deep down that she was no natural beauty or that she was nowhere near as stunning as Kikyo or the beautiful lady in front of her.

Kagome sighed. It seemed that no matter how hard she tried, she'd never be able to truly escape the Past. For a few seconds there she'd actually believed that it was Inuyasha somehow coming back to her. Never mind that the well was no longer usable or that Inuyasha didn't return her feelings, she'd still deluded herself and that was that. The woman rolled over onto her side, giving a small groan from the pain. Speaking of the well, Kagome frowned suddenly. It made her wonder. How on earth had this stranger learnt of the well's power and made it work anyway? Only Kaede could have told her, nobody else in that village knew, and for Kaede to have given a stranger passage to Kagome's home must have been for someone very important indeed. Her eyes narrowed. Or someone who didn't mind forcing information out of old ladies…

It was odd. Kagome now realised that she had to consider the strange woman before her as a possible threat to her family and home. She gulped. True, she had learnt a few things from her various deadly scrapes over the years, but she was still mostly useless in combat without another fighter on her side. Her bow and arrows were upstairs – she hadn't had the heart to burn them – and any fighting she would be doing would be at close range anyway. So basically, she was screwed. _Oh well,_ she decided to downplay the whole thing since it couldn't be avoided, _at least she's human and not some demon out to conquer the whole human world_.

"Gah!!" the woman flipped swiftly back on her side with a muttered howl. It wasn't loud but she was close enough that it still made Kagome jump.

_God…_some protective instinct in her made her hand leap towards her neck, and as she waited, she watched the woman's breathing turn back to normal again. Her hand moved lower down and grasped onto the single sphere attached to her necklace. It was a source of protection for her, a comforting reminder of what went wrong in her life. Slowly she drew out her jewel, its pink rays somehow sparkling in the dim light. Like a remembered dream, the memory of her first sight of the Shikon flashed before her eyes:

…_the well. Old and damp and dusty…but somehow different this time… _

…_confusion…where was she?_

_...a creature that came straight out of her worst nightmares…_

…_running through the woodlands in panic…images jumped out at her from her history textbook…foul men that looked like thieves…_she_ was indecent?! She?? _

_...then fear…a cold fear that settled deep into her bones… _

…_a beautiful face, white hair splayed out across the tree…amidst the horror she felt a new feeling emerge…something pure and true…_

…_then fangs, sharp claws and the thought of an agonising death…it wasn't possible!…surely she was dreaming…_

…_a fated arrow made the perfect shot…shattering! Ah, an end to his dreams!...but behind it all blazed a piercing pink brightness that would never fade…_

She gasped wrenching herself from the memories with force. It was all as vividly clear as if it had happened yesterday, not over two years ago. But there was one thing that stuck out clearer than everything else. Her hand trembled as she began searching in her jeans pocket. She found it and drew it out, wincing as the bright blue beams of light were revealed. The dazzling shine seemed to increase as she held it up in front of her. _It's beautiful_…she thought, mesmerised by the force of the power radiating from the jewel, so much stronger than her own. Yanking the Shikon No Tama from the cord around her neck, she placed the two objects side by side.

Rays of cobalt blue met shimmering pink light in a spiralling dance on the ceiling. They flickered, intertwining in one moment and then clashing in the next as if locked in a heated battle. From what she could see, it looked as if the blue was outshining the pink.

It was impossible for what she was thinking to be true, she knew that, but the thought refused to go away. "There are two of them," she whispered, feeling both a mixture of shock and horror.

"No…" a voice croaked, and Kagome whirled around to see her patient half-propped up on the couch with one bandaged arm extended towards her. Her face wore an expression of fierce determination. "_No_. there are _not_ two." She coughed delicately, her eyes hard.

"Then…" _how do you explain this?_ She wanted to ask, but was too intimidated by the stern look she was getting from the woman on the chair. Though wounded, she looked like she could kick her butt all the way to Kansas and back without effort. _Fairytale princess? Yikes, she's more like an Amazon warrior-queen!_

"It is quite simple," the woman replied, some of her strength returning. "Yours is a fake."

The words tore into Kagome's heart like an accusation of murder. Fake? _Fake?!_ How could she say such a thing? How could _anyone_?? Didn't she know, didn't she care?!

"I'm afraid you must be mistaken," Kagome replied politely, though inside she wanted to kill the bitch. To hell if she was injured, she was definitely an enemy now. "My friends and I have spent over a year searching for the shards of the Shikon No Tama in the feudal era where you just came from. Before it was broken, I'd had the stone in me for fifteen years." She smiled a little, remembering. "I think I can tell which one is right."

"Well you're wrong." The woman snapped, eyeing her disdainfully. Kagome had the sudden impression that something she'd just said had put the woman into a right fury, and she stepped back, bracing herself to run.

"You know nothing!" the woman continued, "Nothing of what you think is right is true, and all you have been taught is wrong." She coughed again but rebounded back on track with alarming speed. "I can sense that you are a priestess of little power and almost no skill. If you had truly possessed the Shikon No Tama then you would be stronger, far stronger than you are. Not to mention that the Shikon No Tama would never accept protection from a weak miko such as yourself. Only the strongest are chosen for that task and in most cases they die defending it." Scorn dripped from every word she spoke, scalding her with their heat. "And furthermore, do you really believe that the Jewel of the Four Souls, one of the greatest items ever made, would have a faint pinkish energy to herald its birth? Pink! Of all things! I can't believe you would accept such nonsense!" she snorted disparagingly. "Look at the evidence before you girl. Yours is not the Shikon No Tama."

It was too much, too soon.

Kagome felt her whole body tremble. The convulsions grew along with her denial.

_No. _

_NO!_

_Never!_

She refused to acknowledge that so much blood and so many lives had been shed for a fake, a cheap rip-off of the real thing. It wasn't true, it _couldn't_ be true!!

"And who are _you_?" she yelled, all pretence of calm lost. "Who the hell do you think you are barging into my home telling me what's right and wrong? I saved your life, you know! You have no right to treat me this way!" She continued on doggedly, feeling the tingling prick of tears in her eyes. "And what's more, h-hhow would you even know if it's a fake, huh? How can I trust you- I don't even know you!"

Salty streams of anger and fear trailed down her cheeks; her head throbbed painfully, adding to the agony of the moment. It seemed like the fates were laughing at her, enjoying her pain and suffering, _relishing_ each and every agonising wound that seared deep into her heart.

_But hadn't she suffered enough?!_

"Tell me who you are!" she screamed furiously, each word laced with aching torment, "I want to know – _who the fuck _are_ you_?!"

Silence reigned in the aftermath of her outburst. Kagome was unexpectedly drained of words; suddenly there was nothing else to say. The two women locked gazes for a moment; Kagome's common brown eyes were diminished in view of the stunning azure gaze of a legend.

"I?" the woman smiled, and the fairytale princess was back again, as radiant as a porcelain doll. "I am Midoriko."

And with those words Kagome was undone.

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	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:**** this is a fictional story written only for my personal amusement. I own nothing, Rumiko Takahashi owns all.**

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The Protector Part I

The alarm clock chimed for the second time that morning, a piercing _riiiing, riing!_ that was effective in that it was too annoying to ignore. Kagome curled up tighter beneath her faded pink duvet, reluctant to move from the soft sheets. Bright yellow sunlight heralding the start of a blissful summer filtered in through the veil-like drapes covering the windows, and at once she felt morose.

_Summer._

A period of more than two months of endless free time spent wasting away doing nothing. She only had about three weeks left of school before summer vacation and she was determined to savour ever last day. Not that she was worried about being bored, Oh no. Kagome was more than certain that Eri, or at least Yuka had already organised a detailed schedule to keep her entertained all through the whole holiday.

With that depressing thought in mind, she got up, sighing heavily when the switch on her alarm refused to turn off. The clock had been picked up several months ago by her mother while she was still time-travelling, to help add some semblance of normalcy to her odd lifestyle. Now it was only another prop in her sparsely decorated bedroom; thanks to Inuyasha's loud pre-dawn awakenings, she'd been wide awake long before the first chime.

Kagome winced as that familiar scar, re-opened by his name, sought to sear its way through her body. She pushed it from her mind, a sharp frown on her face, fully determined to leave him and everything that came with him at rest. She'd open _that_ particular can of worms when she could.

Briskly she went to the bathroom for her morning rituals. It didn't take long to get ready for school. A few minutes freshing up in the bathroom and another few getting dressed and then she was set, saying a quick goodbye to her mom and grandpa and running from her house, a large satchel in one hand, and a small sandwich in the other.

She didn't look back at her house as she ran; she'd made that mistake the first day and had caught sight of two chilling blue eyes watching her go, making her mouth go dry and her stomach do little flip-flops of fear. It was better to ignore her, Kagome decided, keeping a steady pace down the never-ending shrine steps. If she could pretend that she didn't exist then she could carry on with her life as normal, or as normal as it had been before she'd arrived.

But Kagome was beginning to discover that ignoring the presence of a thousand year old miko-goddess when she was sleeping in the guest room beside yours was proving none too easy. Or when she was comfortably meshed in between your mother and brother on the three-man sofa, leaving Kagome no choice but to squat painfully on the floor if she wanted to watch TV. In the five days that she'd been staying there, no words had been spoken between them since the argument when Kagome had found out her current house-guest was a living legend, and had scuttled away upstairs to the safety of her room in shock.

Midoriko, ancient priestess, creator of the Jewel of the Four Souls otherwise known as the Shikon No Tama, and a woman who'd been supposedly dead for over several centuries. It was totally, indisputably, undeniably ridiculous to assume she was telling the truth. But Kagome was far too scared that she was to even try to deny the claim. From what she knew, the Lady Midoriko was a stunning priestess with a brilliant mind and a disconcerting aptitude for purification. Apparently it had been her life's mission to eradicate the scourge of evil demons from the world, and it was on that dangerous path that she'd made the Jewel in the first place. Nothing Kagome had ever heard would have lead her to believe that the priestess was still up and kicking, roaming around of her free will; like everyone else she'd just assumed either death had taken her or she'd fallen afoul of some demon somewhere. The details weren't really relevant.

But to find out that such a powerful miko still lived, and was lodging in her house no less, was truly the sugar-topped icing on the cake. She shivered, remembering how she'd envied the beauty in her fair face, the charming innocence made visible in sleep. Like Kikyo, her prettiness was the guise of a more frightening character beneath. But both bore that trademark stamp of approval that labelled them as competent and powerful, worthy of the title Miko. She in comparison was weak, spineless and incapable of doing anything right. It was no wonder that the woman had gazed at her with such utter loathing in her face; she was far prettier, stronger, and older and yet looked just as good- no _better_- than Kagome did.

Which was, Kagome decided, crossing the busy road to reach the crowded pavement opposite, disturbingly odd to think about.

Logic, and her own nightmarish Feudal experiences had taught her that no human being could achieve immortality by any _normal_ means (she thought of Naraku's inner demons and barely stopped herself from shuddering) which either meant that Midoriko was not quite human, or that she had found a safely unthreatening way to live forever, which still, in the end, pointed towards her being something not quite normal. Suddenly Kagome was filled with an overwhelming fear for her family that she'd left at home, unprotected and unsafe. How did she know she could trust her? Just because she was a priestess didn't mean she was good, after all, Kikyo had been an evil bitch at the best of times, and at the worst she'd been no better than an un-dead _thing, _as undeserving of respect and kindness as the evil demons she killed. What if she decided to hurt someone? Her grandpa? Her mom? Souta??

Her heart clenched inside with worry. The memory of Midoriko's sweetly slumbering form only seemed sinister to her now. _Just think, she could be killing them now, torturing them horribly…_she winced, shutting her eyelids against the painful images. _God! Don't think, don't think, don't think…_She tried to drive her fear away but her body refused to listen and her breathing came out in short, panicked gasps. She knew her family would be helpless against any supernatural threat Midoriko might pose against them. Sure her grandpa liked to throw ofudas and stuff at the first sign of attack, but this was against a trained priestess, for goodness sake! It would be like tossing scrunched up toilet paper to stem the flow of a water fall! Not to mention that if she really was the creator of the jewel, with enough _power_ to create the jewel, well…that brought things to mind that didn't bear thinking of.

She stopped to an abrupt halt in the middle of the street, causing a flurry of disgruntled pedestrians to swerve round her angrily.

_Okay, okay, chill out Kagome,_ she chanted to herself. _This is gonna be fine. Nothing's gonna happen, everything's gonna be alright…_she recited the mantra over and over to herself repeatedly, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart.

Eventually the heavy pounding in her chest slowed to a mild thrumming; the silky veil of panic that had momentarily blinded her senses lifted, and she found that she could breathe. She inhaled, feeling the forceful whoosh of air as it filled her lungs before releasing, more slowly this time, as she savoured the moment.

After a while she resumed her stroll again feeling a bit foolish and more than a little self-conscious. _Talk about insecurities!_ She shook her head, embarrassed by her own short-comings. Her mind had jumped too quickly to conclusions and because of that, she'd almost had a panic-attack in the middle of central Tokyo! Prickles of heat crept unhurriedly into her cheeks, filling them with a lasting heat that burned. _Just imagine…if someone had _seen_ her…!_

Because of course there was no logical explanation to say that Midoriko was an enemy at all. She was still dangerous – there was no use denying _that_ – but that was no reason to believe that her family were in any danger in her company. After all, this was the sixth day since she'd arrived and nothing untoward had happened at all. In fact, Midoriko had been more than pleasant to her family,successfully charming the pants off her grandpa by laughing at his old man jokes and making waves with her mother in the kitchen when she helped out with the cooking. Even Souta had succumbed, eagerly watching when Midoriko offered to perform several magic tricks for his amusement. Not that she could do much. Her injuries had left her more or less confined to one place at a time, forcing her to rely on the personal hospitality of whosoever was in the room with her if she wanted to move around.

Kagome made sure it was never her.

But even though she avoided Midoriko, there were times when courtesy demanded they speak. Thankfully at the dinner-table, Souta was still determined to withdraw from her everything she knew about demons, while her grandfather contented himself with bombarding her with questions on incantations and spells. Between the two of them there was hardly any room for her to make polite conversation, and even if Midoriko had wanted to talk, she was too bogged down with questions to find answers of her own. Still, Kagome couldn't help feeling slightly inadequate once she saw how interested her family were about things from the Past. She'd never realised how fascinated they were, never bothered to ask them if there was anything they wanted know. Now of course, it was the Great Lady who was getting all the attention for her knowledge, providing answers that even she could have given.

She crossed the street, noticing the roads had become less packed as the minutes passed until finally she was rounding an almost empty corner, nearing her high school. Kagome's eyes quickly scanned the perimeter for any sign of the 'destructive duo' and sighed in honest relief when she didn't see them. Then she sighed again, guiltily this time. In truth she was slightly ashamed of the way she treated her friends. Even to her warped sense of mind it seemed odd that she was so eager to avoid the company of her so-called 'Best Friends Forever!!' but frankly she couldn't help but find them a bit overwhelming. She'd been close to Eri and Yuka for years without any problems but these days she found that she couldn't spend more than an hour at a time in their presence without losing her ever present civility and lashing out. She really couldn't help it- they were just so annoying!

Kagome felt angry tension coil upwards in her stiff arms and relaxed, easing the pain away. She reached up a hand to sweep aside the stray locks covering her eyes that were – annoyingly enough – blocking her sight, and felt her whole body collide with something hard. A wall.

"_Oww_..."

A laugh from behind sent her head whirling in that direction. "Hey! Be careful there, Kagome. We wouldn't want you getting back in the hospital so soon after your recovery now would we?" Hojo stepped up beside her, cradling her shoulders in a steady grip.

"Oh, hi, Hojo, it's you." She said, trying not to sound as dejected as she felt. Kagome rubbed her sore head with as minimal pressure as possible, cursing herself inwardly. In her distraction she'd completely forgotten Hojo's promise to meet her at the gates every morning before and after school, and had walked right past him unseeingly. _Yeah. Straight into a wall..._

Kagome winced at the pain, peering at him from the corner of her eye. It wasn't that she didn't like him, she thought to herself firmly, or that she resented his attentions - after all she was lucky, most guys she knew wouldn't go near her with a ten-foot pole - it was more that every time she heard his young man's laughter, so boyish and calm, or felt the warm touch of his hand upon her skin, she couldn't help but remember another boy's soft smile that appeared oh-so rarely and which she cherished all the more for it. In those moments, time froze over in her mind, incapacitating her body and rendering her completely her useless. For one long second, she was once again with the boy that had broken her heart.

He frowned at her in slight puzzlement. "Of course it's me, Kagome, who were you expecting?" Then before she could answer he spoke again, bending to pick up her fallen rucksack. "Here let me help you with that," he smiled amiably at her protests and held the bag high beyond her reach. "Ready to go?"

She sighed, giving in with ill grace, and followed him into the school, wishing not for the first time that her tastes lay with kind-hearted schoolboys instead of a certain brash, insensitive hanyou.

--

Finally it was over.

When the final bell rang signalling the end of class, Kagome smiled in relief but didn't move. In a strange lazy sort of way, she realised that she was just too comfortable where she was to even bother arranging her textbooks and stationery to pack into her schoolbag. She'd done nothing all day but sit down in her seat and stare out the window adjacent to her desk – _a perfect seat arrangement_, she thought gratefully, _thanks to Sanada-sensei, of course _– except during P.E, when she was forced to participate in a meaningless game of hockey that ended sooner than expected after Kagome had been knocked into the gym wall _again,_ and was forced to sit out for the rest of the hour. Which was fine really, because it meant that she could use the time staring into space daydreaming again until the end of the lesson. Perfect.

All in all it had been a surprisingly enjoyable day. Entirely unproductive of course, but enjoyable nonetheless. Besides, she was well aware that she had plenty of time over summer to make up for her poor grades and even if that didn't work, it wasn't like she cared about graduating anyway. All the things she'd ever wanted for her future were far out of reach now, so what did it matter if she was flunking school?

She grimaced, feeling her spirits lowering considerably. Great, just when she was having a good time she had to go and depress herself with _memories_. Uurgh, it was enough to make her want to scream! Or cry, whichever one came first. She slunk lower in her chair, wondering why she almost never felt happy anymore. _Maybe I should go see a shrink. I'm depressed enough, right? _She thought sullenly._ But then what would I tell him? _In her mind she pictured the movies she'd seen where the depressed teenager was forced to bare his or her soul to the friendly neighbourhood psychiatrist as a mode of 'therapy'. _That would go well – Oh yeah, basically I'm upset 'cause my half demon boyfriend, who wasn't really my boyfriend just this guy I kissed once, decided to dump me for his ex, this un-dead priestess chick whose soul I just happen to have stolen during birth, and now I'll never see him again because he lives in the Past with a whole other bunch of manic power hungry demons, some of whom eat humans for fun…_

Uh-huh, she snorted despite herself, picturing the white straight jackets they'd force her in and bare windowless rooms. She could see that going down real well.

"Ahhhh," she groaned and sat up straight, stretching her arms out behind her. She was still sorely tempted to just stay there sitting at her desk for as long as she could. _Just a little bit longer…_An hour, three hours? All night?? It could work, she considered. _At least until the janitor came and kicked her out._ Grinning, she quickly packed up her stuff and left the now empty classroom to follow the remaining students out onto the school grounds where Hojo was waiting patiently.

_Crap! And he's not alone…_ she realised a second too late exactly which two girls were standing next to him, and they'd already seen her so she couldn't go back. "Hey guys! Sorry, I took so long. How was your day?" Kagome addressed all three but aimed her question at Hojo in particular, hoping that he would intercept the tirade that she knew was coming.

It seemed that her good day had ended. Before Kagome's last words had even left her lips, Yuka's mouth was wide open, her eyes set in a disapproving frown. "Kaggggooome!" she whined, making Hojo wince. "We haven't seen you in like a year. Where have you been?"

"Yeah, Kagoooomee!" Eri was normally the better of the two but apparently she was also in a high strop. "What's with you lately? We like never see you!" She stamped a little foot in childish rage.

Considering that they were supposed to be her closest friends, Kagome swallowed the instinctive retort of 'Noooo! Ya think?!' and tried to come up with something to appease them. Luckily Hojo stepped in to the rescue, politely urging them to get moving else they'd be stuck at school till nightfall. They started walking down the empty street in silence; however Yuka was nothing if not persistent.

"Look Kagome," she said, flicking her hair out behind her. "I'm just saying. We're your best friends and everything and yet we hardly ever spend time with you. What's so important that you've gotta blow us off all the time?"

"I don't-" she cut off abruptly at the sharp look of reproof Yuka directed her way.

"Yes, Kagome you do. And you don't even give good explanations when you can't hang out with us; you just say 'school' or 'homework'. But it can't be that because I'm taking mostly the same classes as you and I never have that much work!"

"I mean," Eri continued where Yuka left off, "It's not like you're sick anymore – you're completely healthy now. The least you could do is take advantage of it and come out and have fun with us."

"Eri!" Hojo scolded loudly, looking utterly scandalised. It was Hojo's belief that no one should ever mention the many 'sicknesses' that had supposedly incapacitated her during those months spent in the feudal era, thinking that she might become traumatised if reminded. He had always been entirely sympathetic towards Kagome during the few days when she actually returned to school and considered her very brave for dealing with what she'd been through. She wasn't too surprised, considering the high fatality risk of the many illnesses she had acquired (stupid,_ stupid_ Grandpa!!) and had worried for a while about what she would say to people when they eventually asked her about them. But she had been pleased to find upon re-entering the school, that the subject had been almost taboo amongst the other students thanks to Hojo's influence, and that the teaching staff had also made sure that she wouldn't be bothered with embarrassing questions she didn't have the answers to.

"It's the truth," she sniffed, looking not in the least repentant, making Kagome re-evaluate her assessment of who was the nicer girl.

Yuka stopped and turned to face her, eyes reflecting some hidden emotion she didn't have the energy to consider. "Kagome, if I didn't know any better, I would say that you didn't want to spend time with us anymore. That you didn't want to be our friends." Now they both looked at her expectantly, faces expressing incalculable hurt when she remained silent.

But wouldn't it be better if she just said nothing, though? If she just _let them go_? She wasn't truly their friend anyway, not in the way they wanted her to be, and that was what they were really asking for. Was it fair to use them like that just so that she could appear normal to the outside world? So people didn't walk up to her with proffered straight-jackets and prescribing happy pills? But then again, she noted sadly, she wasn't exactly sure _how_ to be their friend again, wasn't sure if she could try. It had been easier before when there was nothing to compare them with; just ordinary fifteen year olds doing normal everyday things. But she was changed now – and Eri was no Sango, no matter how fierce she had become. Kagome felt a headache coming on and resisted the urge to massage her head. She needed to fix this situation right now, while things were still salvageable.

"Guys," she stated softly, ignoring Hojo who looked distinctly uncomfortable to be caught in the middle of a girl-fight. "I'm sorry. I-I'm just, I-I don't…" She inhaled sharply, the cool air clearing her head. "It's just that I'm going through some stuff right now and it's taking me a hard time to get over it." It was easier to fake emotion if she stuck to the truth. "I really can't explain and I'm sorry for not being around but I haven't exactly been myself, and I didn't think you'd want me around if I was acting weird anyway." When neither of them reacted, she grew a bit panicked, reaching out to grab each of their hands before they could pull away.

"I-I honestly didn't mean to hurt you guys, I just needed some time to myself for a while. You understand, right? Eri? Yuka?" she tugged frantically on their arms trying to see the expressions beneath their lowered heads. _God! What if they didn't forgive her?! _

"I'm sorry," her words were so quiet they were near inaudible, but Kagome saw a faint twitch in Yuka's left cheek. "You'll still be my best friends, right?"

"Of course we will, silly!" Eri giggled happily, no longer able to continue the pretence of anger. Yuka gave her a mildly irritated look, "Honestly, Eri. I told you not to say anything until she started _begging_!" Then seeing the incredulity in Kagome's face, she laughed outright, grinning madly. "Alright you caught us! We weren't really that upset, we just wanted to have some fun with you, so don't be angry!" and then she burst into another fit of wild giggles. Kagome turned her head at the sound of male chuckles to see Hojo smiling slightly, also amused at her expense.

Surprise was mixed in amongst several other layers of emotions she was feeling, yet the only thought that she could fully process was just…just how_ annoying_ they were! Gah!

She stomped off alone, wishing she had longer legs so that she could quickly get ahead of them and mesh in with the crowds. As it was, Eri and Yuka lagged behind, but Hojo caught up with her with ease.

"Don't be upset," he slid his palm across her waist in a very un-Hojo like gesture, and then blushed at his apparent boldness. 'I'm sorry," he said releasing her swiftly, "I didn't mean to-I...I just wanted to comfort you." He finished lamely, a high flush lighting up pale skin.

She couldn't help it, she smiled. He was just so _different_ to what she was used to that it was inconceivable that she could ever fall for him.

"Don't worry Hojo," her voice was gentle enough that he met her gaze nervously. "I'm alright."

_For now. _Was the unspoken ending to a sentence that held far more insight to her current disposition than she would normally allow. He nodded slowly, as if processing her tone, and she wondered what she would do if he could actually _understand_.

_Don't wish for impossible things, Kagome. You know better than that_, she told herself, an ancient emptiness curling up inside her. And she did, all too well.

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**A/N: Thanks for the reviews I got from ****shadowxwolf****, ****knifethrower****, ****nelita**** and ****metalcherry**** for adding me to her story alert. It really means a lot to hear feedback. **


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:**** this is a fictional story written only for my personal amusement. I own nothing, Rumiko Takahashi owns all.**

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The Protector Part II

In the end, things nearly got physical before she could convince them that she wanted to be left alone.

"But _why?_" Yuka scrunched up her face, her ever annoying whine back in full force. "We're your friends. We're supposed to be around when you're upset!"

"Yeah," Eri also decided to put her two cents in. "We want to help you, Kagome, can't you see that?"

She sighed. "Like I said before, you guys, I've got a lot of things on my mind right now and I really need to sort it all out. Besides, life at home has become a bit…difficult for me." It was the only way she could think of describing the current situation in her household, without mentioning Midoriko or the truth about her current depression. The less she told them, the better. "Please, don't take it personally."

Yuka rolled her eyes. "Sure. Like we could take it any other way." But she smiled when she said it.

After that, it didn't take long to shake the two of them off; both girls lived a lot closer to the central districts than she did, and only Hojo could ever stay long enough to walk her home. She tried, once again, to persuade him otherwise, but once again, he refused to be swayed. Either he had gotten more stubborn recently or she just didn't want to get rid of him as much as she liked to think. _Now there's a disturbing thought,_ she grimaced mentally at the prospect of having a Hojo-type male friend tailing her around for the rest of her days, sending get-well cards and buying fruit. She snorted. _Because that's_ exactly _how I want to spend the rest of my life…_

But thinking about what she wanted and what she couldn't and could never have would only make her distressed again. She smiled sadly and abruptly switched from that painful train of thought, instead she concentrated on the stroll, focusing her body and mind on the scenery around her.

They walked in comfortable silence down the roads, completely isolated save for the odd couple passing by. Evidence of the changing season was everywhere; the sudden heat that caused her body to long for months of wintry ice, drops of cool sweat lingering at her lower back. The way her skin grew warmer in the ever present sunlight and would darken slightly, to a not-quite-tan that made her look younger and fresh. Multitudes of colourful flowers littered the stray patches of grass they passed like small rainbows in a sea of dry grey. And then from behind the dried-up white clouds the real rainbows appeared, scattered across the sky as if they'd always been there – beauty incarnate. And yet despite all of this _goodness_, she still hated summer.

A small sigh escaped her, and she found herself wanting very much to just go home and curl up in bed. At least her house wasn't much farther now, only two more streets to cross and then she'd be there.

Unbidden, her stomach lurched at the thought and she shivered slightly. She'd almost forgotten the potential terror that waited for her at her house. Hojo reached over and grasped her small hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. She blinked and looked up at him in surprise, only then realising that she'd made unconscious steps towards him in the time that they'd been walking together. Now she was close enough to feel the warmth of his body gently brushing against hers as she moved; the cool silk of his palm beneath her own roughened one. _No boy should have palms that smooth,_ she thought crossly, and then relaxed into his grip when his thumb traced over the sensitive inner skin of her wrist. It was unbelievable soothing.

He smiled and glanced at her, his cheeks a faint pink. "Does that feel better?" he asked, alternating his movements to rhythmic circular motions.

"Oh yes," She purred with contentment, and then blushed a bright red. _What the hell._ _Did I just purr…?!_

He didn't seem to have noticed her embarrassment. "That's good. I did a little research yesterday and I found out that certain massages act as treatment for many external injuries, and also as pain relief for people who've suffered from loads of diseases like you have," her left eye twitched but he carried on. "Anyway, I just thought it would be a good idea for me to try it on you and see if it helped at all." Suddenly he beamed at her, and without thinking, she smiled back. "You look so pretty when you smile, Kagome. No, not just pretty – stunning. I wish you'd smile more often."

"Hahaha…" She laughed nervously waving her hand in the air. "Oh, stop Hojo. You know I don't like all that flattery stuff."

"But it's true!" He protested, his eyes widening a fraction. "You know I wouldn't lie to you about something like this. You _are_ beautiful, Kagome, I swear!"

He looked so sincere, in his barely rumpled school uniform and his squeaky clean shoes. It almost hurt to try and rebuff the absolute honesty in his gaze. _You see! _She screamed at herself. _This is the problem with spending too much time with nice boys and their innocent brown eyes. You can't let them get close because you carry secrets – but they're already close enough to get hurt._ Which, when you really got down to it, was the real problem in the situation. Of them all, she hated stringing Hojo along the most simply because he was so damn _nice_. She didn't want to hurt him, and inevitably, him getting hurt would be the result of any attempts he made at a relationship between them.

Not to mention that when he looked at her like _that_, the guilt clogged up inside her throat like viscous tar and she just wanted to _die_.

Thankfully the awkward moment was broken when she flicked her eyes down and her head away, the taut skin there suddenly tormented by the bruising she'd acquired earlier that day. She winced. "Urgh! Jeez, Hojo, I think my head is bust!"

"Not likely." He laughed good-naturedly and then reached forward, cupping her chin and rubbing soft patterns into her forehead with the points of his knuckles. It should have felt intimate with the way things were between them, but she was grateful to find that it was not. "This shouldn't hurt, but tell me if it does, okay? The book that I got it from said that massaging like this can soothe the pain in almost any headache, but that at times it can be very painful. I also found out that doing a certain movement with your hand can directly affect the pain receptors in another area of your body. Like rubbing your fingers together to stop muscle cramp in your thigh or something. Did you know that? It's cool, right?"

"Uh-huh." She wasn't listening, but she knew that as long as she nodded in the right places and pretended like she was then he would be all right with it.

He blabbered on for several more minutes, and Kagome found that she was just content to listen to his steady voice in the background, much as she had done some days ago on the phone. They held hands – once he had finished showing her his massage therapy, of course – and then all too soon she was at the shrine steps. She climbed a few of them and then turned around to say goodbye.

To her surprise she found that Hojo was still beside her, looking not in the least like he was about to leave.

Unsurprisingly, she snapped.

"Hojo what is your problem?!" She scolded impatiently, exasperation evident in her tone. "You know you don't have to walk me into the house – we're already in the compound, for goodness' sake! It's not like I'm in any danger here."

He coloured darkly and ducked his head. "I know, but I was sort of, er, I was kind of hoping that um…well, I really wanted you to invite me in today." The last bit was said in a frenzied rush, and although she only managed to catch the tail end of his words, it was enough.

He sneaked a peek up at her face to gauge her reaction. "Kagome?" he asked nervously.

She let out a harsh breath through her nose. Why was he so determined to be difficult? Kagome opened her mouth to tell him kindly but firmly that no, he couldn't come in, when a silky voice interrupted her.

"Kagome, my _dear_, you simply _must_ let that boy in. He's too delicious for words!"

She stiffened, and not just from hearing her name called in a voice that she barely recognised, but more so from the touch of the pale hand that graced her shoulder. Midoriko.

She turned her head slowly, but was still unprepared for the sight she saw.

Midoriko had always been beautiful. Even when she'd lain on the dirt ground, wounded and dying it had been one of the first things she'd noted about her. But in the afternoon sunlight, with the clouds parting overhead to reveal her gloriously smooth skin and lustrous dark hair curving naturally against her oval face, her eyes looked the brightest of blues, with the faultlessly aligned features of her face complimenting each other perfectly. And her smile…! _God! _

Kagome had never hated her more.

"So Kagome, dear," Midoriko's eyes swept over her carelessly and then returned to their fixture of Hojo. "Won't you introduce me to this gorgeous young man of yours? I won't be very pleased if you don't." She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously.

Kagome was tempted to spit in her stupid perfect face and see how _pleased_ she was then, but the fingers at her shoulder tightened their grip just slightly and she quickly rethought her actions. Hojo was staring at her, blissfully unaware of his open mouth, and for once Kagome felt a sharp pang of jealously for his lost attentions. _I bet his ideas of what's beautiful and what isn't will change soon enough,_ she reflected resentfully.

She raised an arm, pointing between the two of them. "This is Hojo," she said, her voice dull.

It was only when Midoriko's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, that Kagome realised she was supposed to introduce her as well.

_Shit! Shit! Er, think…_

"Oh! And, er, Hojo," Stress had caused her voice to sound higher, sounding squeaky in comparison to Midoriko's sultry tones. "This is my aunt…Kikyo."

She wasn't sure why she said it, or why it was the only name that had popped to mind. All she knew was that the moment she'd spoken Midoriko had whipped her head round in shock, and the fingers that were latched onto her school shirt dug like talons into flesh.

_Uh, oh… _

"It's an honour to meet you, Kikyo-san," Hojo stammered, finally recovered from being the sole focus of Midoriko's stare. His smile was uncertain, but he regained his confidence as he went on. "Kagome didn't mention that she had family visiting," he said politely. "Did you come alone or are there others with you?"

"No, it's just me." She replied curtly, blue eyes still trained on Kagome's motionless form.

She fidgeted nervously, a growing feeling of upcoming dread seeping into her stomach. It was like that moment when they had first met more than five days ago when Kagome had known, almost instinctively, that something she'd said had angered the priestess greatly. Now her reaction seemed more alarmed than pissed off, but she still couldn't be sure. She could only hope that the end result wouldn't force her into another five-day depression, feeling sad and cut off from the world.

"Um, are we going into the house anytime soon?" She said breaking the spell.

"Of course! How rude of me!" Midoriko giggled. "Come on in sweetie, I'll make some tea shall I? You like herbal tea don't you, Hojo dear? " The false cheeriness was back, all fluttery lashes and pink lipped smiles. Hojo looked entranced, a slight sheen taking over the dark surface of his pupils.

What kind of game was she playing? Kagome wondered, following them up the many stone steps into the inner shrine compound. Midoriko's hand was curled around Hojo's elbow, and she was leading him towards the house, both of them fully immersed in their conversation. From what she'd seen of Midoriko over the past few days – and admittedly it hadn't been much – this was slightly out of character behaviour for the woman. In fact, it seemed out of character for anyone. Hojo wasn't delicious – he was nowhere near it! She'd met delicious in the feudal era and most human men would never be able to compare. Not that he wasn't attractive, she thought. But he was a bit too normal for her tastes. _And really, shouldn't Midoriko feel the same way?_

But then again what did she know? Wasn't _she_ the weird one in the situation? Maybe it was normal for very old women to fawn over average teenage boys like they'd never seen drop-dead gorgeous demons before. Kagome shook her head, repulsed.

The trek was always more stressful going up than down and when they finally reached the top, her eyes instantly fixed on the old rusty wood and iron signpost introducing all visitors to the memorable 'Higrashi Shrin'. She grimaced, mentally noting to fix the words on the signboard when she had the time.

The Higurashis were fortunate in that their shrine was less popular than other shrines that were centred nearer the hearts of the big city, which meant that it was more traditional and less commercialised. Enough people came to allow them a certain source of income, but their fees for charms and protection wards were so moderately priced that they would never be rolling in money. Which wasn't a problem really, not for her or anyone else in the family. Anything she needed she'd always gotten, and when she hadn't got what she wanted it had generally been with things she'd forget about after a week, and wouldn't have made any lasting commitment to. Like a puppy, she thought. _After all I only got Bouyo because the old lady down the road had had too many kittens and she didn't know what to do with them al- _

_Gah!_ She tripped over a rock, scuffing the edge of her shoe, and only just managed not to fall flat on her face. She praised whatever God there was in existence for that small mercy; it was embarrassing enough with just Hojo there to see, but it would be infinitely worse for the great miko to be a witness to her shame as well.

Thinking of her current position caused her to become abruptly aware of the conversation going on beside her, and when she heard her name meshed in with some other meaningless words, instinct caused her ears to sharpen, and she leaned closer towards them, hoping to catch the rest of the sentence.

A sweet voice drifted over. "So Hojo, how do you and Kagome know each other?"

"We've being going to the same school for a few years now, and I've got several classes with her too."

"I take it you two must be very good friends."

Yes, I – er," she didn't need to see him to know that once again Hojo was blushing. "I think we're very close. Close friends, I mean."

"How lovely," the voice cooed. "So are you two betrothed?"

"_What??"_

Both she and Hojo spoke at the same time, the strength of her indignant cry drowning out his small squeak of surprise.

"What did you just ask?" her throat was dry.

Midoriko appeared unruffled. "I asked if you were betrothed, dear. But from your unseemly reaction I can safely assume that you are not." She raised a delicate brow.

"No, we aren't," she asserted forcefully, suddenly impatient for Hojo to leave so they could just have this imminent 'talk' already. The tension was already building up again at an astounding pace and she wanted to know what the hell was going on before she exploded with rage.

_Eurgh!_ She and Inuyasha would never have been able to cope with each other if they'd been fighting like this every day. She stilled, shocked to realise that she had just compared her relationship with Inuyasha to the one she had with Midoriko, a woman she practically hated. _And I didn't even flinch at his name!_ She realised proudly. It was a small victory, but in her state she was willing to take all she could get.

Midoriko's eyes shifted as if she too was eager to bring on their confrontation. "Hojo darling," her voice trickled down like liquid velvet, commanding his obedience to her whims. "Young Kagome and I need to go inside and discuss something rather urgently. You won't mind terribly if I ask you to come back tomorrow?"

The way he looked, she could have asked him to fly and he would have run to the nearest skyscraper to give it a go, so it wasn't too great a shock when he complied easily, giving a hasty goodbye to Kagome with the promise to return the next day.

"And I'll bring that massage book for you to read!" he called back, halfway down the white stairs.

She waved after him, feeling a lonely pang thrumming in her chest. Despite her earlier urges, she was already wishing that he hadn't left her so quickly, leaving her to fend for herself against the older, more experienced priestess. As it was, Kagome was now alone with her, and in response, mind-numbing fear curled up in her belly.

"Well that was interesting, wasn't it, Kagome?" Midoriko said softly.

Her voice was still charming but it had returned to its original tone the way she remembered it being, no longer lathered in layers of feminine charm and saccharine sweetness. It now carried an edgier feel to it, revealing a surface of steel beneath the sugary weight.

"If you say so," she replied, feigning nonchalance. "To be honest, I was a bit surprised to see you paying so much interest in my friend."

Midoriko smiled. "Jealous, Kagome?"

"No!" she snapped angrily. For God's sake, what was this woman's problem?! "Not in the least. Hojo and I aren't like that."

"Aren't you? That's not the way it looked to me."

"Well maybe you looked wrong!" Kagome huffed. She was so tired of all this dancing around each other business. Why couldn't they just get down to the real reason they needed to talk?

Unfortunately, Midoriko only seemed amused by her unexpected bout of temper. "Are you always this feisty, child? I was under the impression that you were a bit passive after all those days locked up in your room. I had no idea you could be this entertaining."

Oh that was it!

"For your information, Midoriko-_sama_, I enjoy spending time in my room! I do it quite a lot actually." Okay. She was lying through her teeth, but she knew she would rather die than admit the truth. "And it's really not any of your business what I do in my free time anyway. Why do you care? It's not like we're friends," she snorted.

"Maybe not," the older woman was abruptly serious. "But admittedly there is some sort of connection between us. Something far more powerful." Her eyes gleamed intensely and then narrowed into a hard stare. "You have a lot of explaining to do, girl."

Immediately Kagome's heart began to pound loudly, heavy thumps ricocheting off the wall of her ribcage in an increasing rhythm. "Explaining?" She shrilled. "I don't know what you're talking about! If anything, you're the one that needs to explain." Her cheeks were cherry red with exertion; her body tensed for sudden flight.

Midoriko stepped forward so fast it seemed as if she'd barely moved._ Whoa, she has demon speed!_ Kagome thought randomly, before all current thought went flying out the window.

Hot air curled around the sensitive skin at her neck, heating it briefly before a strong hand gripped her throat. "Oh, I think you know very well, what I mean," she hissed into her ear, gripping even tighter. "_Guardian of the Shikon No Tama_? That's not something you can claim lightly, my girl. Even if you _d_o possess some sort of imitation jewel."

_Guardian? Oh! Oh…_Her mother must have told her, she realised faintly, only half-aware of the fingers curled around her throat. Mikoumi always had enjoyed talking to people about the achievements of her two children, her 'pride and joys' as she called them, so it must have been a real disappointment when Kagome had sworn her to absolute secrecy about the whole time-travelling affair. She'd understood of course – no sane mother would want to see her child carted off to a mental hospital – but Midoriko's sudden presence in the household must have been an opportunity for her to finally let out the urge to talk to someone about it, about everything. Kagome sighed. She couldn't blame her mom; she didn't even know who Midoriko was anyway, or how dangerous she could be. Besides, Kagome knew that if she'd had the chance she would have spilled her tale in a heartbeat, no matter the consequences.

Belatedly she found herself wondering what other information Midoriko might have gleaned about her, from her mother or from Kaede. It put her at a slight disadvantage – okay, she reassessed, _much_ more than a 'slight disadvantage'. _She's a great miko and she has her hand around my neck for crying out loud!_ – But it wasn't like she couldn't fight back if she had too. She did have _some_ skills…just not very many.

By this time her air supply was rapidly fading and it was only the fact that she was quite familiar with this form of death, having experienced it many times before, that she hadn't passed out altogether. Nevertheless she did want to breath eventually and she began scratching and raking her nails against the other woman's flesh, hoping to drive her off.

"You want me to stop do you?" Midoriko asked disinterestedly, making no move to lessen her grip.

What do you think? Kagome sniped mentally, wishing she could say it out loud. Though she had a feeling it wouldn't have helped her case much.

As if she could read her mind Midoriko smiled darkly.

"I could kill you right now." She murmured. "In fact I _should_ kill you. You're far more trouble than you're worth, not to mention that I really could do without another meaningless distraction in my life**.**" She pressed harder and Kagome felt the darkness coming on, seeping into her line of vision. "But-" her hand loosened save for three fingers still remaining encircled round her neck. Midoriko sighed. "I suppose I'm not that kind."

Suddenly she tossed Kagome to the side in a flash movement that had her crashing into the brick wall next to the inner shrine doors. Her head lolled on in its side while she gasped for breath. "I'm afraid you'll have to answer my questions first before I can even consider killing you." She said, before turning swiftly and disappearing from sight.

Kagome barely heard her; she was too busy claiming life from the air, her lungs soaking in every precious breath of oxygen she could take. She coughed and sputtered while her hands still clutched desperately at her throat. _Thank, th-thank, thank g-goodness,_ she wanted to say, but her muscles were incapacitated and her tongue was like a dead thing in her mouth.

Eventually she calmed down enough to recover, but her mind was still reeling, dizzy from shock and pain._ It hurts so much!_ She groaned loudly, slowly sitting up into a low crouch. She wasn't quite sure what had even happened to her. All she remembered was the dreadful inner burning she felt and a painful need for air. And after that, nothing. No, she frowned, that wasn't it. Someone had been hurting her! Someone…someone, and then she remembered.

Midoriko.

Kagome wanted to scream. It seemed like the Great Miko was at the heart of every problem in her life. First with the reuse of the well-portal, then the accusations about her 'fake jewel' – Kagome had to suppress a wince at that, it still hurt when she thought of it – then the return of her depression and her almost near-fatal death experience. _Jeez, why the hell does she hate me so much?? What did I do to her?_

Because obviously she had some kind of grudge against her. She knew who Kagome was, she had information about her, and she'd specifically gone looking for her even to her house in the future. If that wasn't dedication then she didn't know what was.

_But still…_Midoriko had said that she wouldn't kill her yet. Even though she had nearly done just that, without a second's thought of remorse. _And how did she do that anyway?_ No human was naturally that strong or fast. She'd practically thrown her about like a weightless doll! As if she and the other woman weren't of an equal height and build, like she weighed nothing.

Like she _was_ nothing.

Kagome could feel the depression returning, like the tide rolling into the shore at high speeds, crashing into the sodden bank. Everything was so horrible, she decided irritably. She was miserable and her life sucked. She wasn't sure why she even _bothered_ anymore. Nobody cared. The world was just one big fat shithole.

She sighed, frustrated. Couldn't she get a break – just once?

"Kagooome!" Her mother's high pitched trill called out to her. "Come inside, I need your help in the kitchen!"

Urgh. Life was so not worth living.

--

**A/N: I feel kind of bad for the slow update, but I was having some writing problems and then my internet messed up. It may seem a bit rushed in some parts but that's just because I really wanted to get to the interesting bits! For all those who are actually reading this, (and there are actually quite a few) please leave a review. Otherwise I won't know what to think, or whether the story's getting crappy or not. **


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:**** this is a fictional story written only for my personal amusement. I own nothing, Rumiko Takahashi owns all.**

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The Protector Part III

Kagome walked into the large kitchen and took a seat at the dining table. She scowled. "Okay, mom, what do you need help with?" She still hadn't quite gotten over her pissiness yet.

Mikoumi smiled gently. "Nothing too serious, dear. The food is cooking nicely so all I need is for you to set the table." Her eyes turned reflective as she gazed upon her daughter. "…Unless I'm disturbing you from something else, of course."

She sighed, clearing her face of the irate expression. "No, mom, it's fine. I'll do it in a sec."

Her mother nodded swiftly and gave her daughter a quick peck on the cheek. "You shouldn't let yourself get so stressed," she chided, smoothing her hand over her dark hair. "After all, you've got your whole life ahead of you now that the shards have been collected. You should be happy!" Her sharp gaze took it all in as Kagome's features suddenly became blank and a wearied, dead shroud descended over her face.

She spoke more softly this time, concern filling her every word. "Kagome, I'm not trying to say that you shouldn't be upset – I understand that you've lost a lot by leaving that world, more than I can possibly guess." Kagome swallowed tightly, a large lump forming in her throat. "And I know you had ties there, practically another whole family that you love, and still do. But I want you to understand that you're still very young, and you'll only be hurting yourself more if you let yourself be overcome by the pain." She tilted her chin upwards so that they were at eye level. "When I lost your father in that accident, Kagome, well- I, he was my world. I didn't think there was any way I could ever survive without him. But I had to, because I had you and Souta to look after, and you both are just as important to me as he was, if not more." She let out a tired breath. "So, what I'm really asking you Kagome is, please, take care of yourself. For us if not for you. We all love you and we hate to see you looking so depressed all the time. We only want to see you happy, darling. It's the truth."

Kagome blinked rapidly, the tears she tried to hold at bay falling easily down her cheeks. She didn't know what to say. Sure she had known all of this already but to hear her mom say it out loud…

She threw her arms around her mother in a gripping hug. "Thank you," she breathed, ignoring the thick, nasal whine her voice had become. "It means so much to me to hear you say that, and I-I love you too, mom." It came blurting out, more on instinct than anything else because Kagome suddenly realised that it had been a long time since she'd last said those words to her mother, while actually considering the true meaning behind them.

The happiness radiating from her mother's face made it truly worth it. "I love you too sweetheart. Always." She beamed. "Now," she straightened and walked over to the countertop where she plucked a few paper towels from the dispenser. "Dry your eyes and then get started with the table. I'm sure you'll feel much better once you've tasted what's for dinner."

"Oh, really?" Kagome blew her nose none too quietly; the sound was vaguely reminiscent of an elephant farting. She sniffed, "So what are we having?"

She winked. "A special dish for once. Miso soup with rice and prawn cakes**.**"

Kagome couldn't help looking surprised. "Wow, mom, I didn't know you could make that!" Normally her mother tended to cook non-Japanese dishes like curry and pasta, simply because she was so horrid at anything else. Nearly all the time she ended up burning something in the process (like the chicken, for example) but with foreign food it seemed to happen less. For her to even bother with the soup was startling to say the least, but the fact that she was so confident about its taste-factor was more than a little disconcerting.

Mikoumi laughed. "Oh no, dear! I didn't make dinner tonight. Midoriko did. She was preparing it while you were at school." She turned towards the stove, completely missing the look of utter revulsion that settled upon Kagome's face. "Speaking of which, I suppose I should call her in here. The soup needs tending to and I'm not entirely sure how to handle it…"

"I'm right here." A voice spoke up.

Kagome jumped at the presence sitting oh-so-comfortably next to her, whose movements were so silent she hadn't even noticed when she walked in. Midoriko shifted in her chair and grinned at her, as if she hadn't just tried to kill her less than half an hour ago.

"Hello, Kagome, how are you? I hope school was fun today…" The dancing amusement in her eyes told her that she was playing a game with her, one she was expected to play along to as well.

Knowing she couldn't exactly be rude in front of her mother, Kagome offered a grim smile in return. "Fine thank you, Midoriko-sama. It was in fact a rather pleasant day," _Until you ruined it,_ she finished in her thoughts.

"Well, I'll just leave it all to you then, Midoriko." Mikoumi gazed down fondly upon the seemingly younger woman, and then patted her head. "And thank you so much for cooking for us these past few days. I know your wounds have only just gotten better and it must be such a chore…"

"No thanks are necessary, Mikoumi-san." Midoriko said brightly, cutting her mom off short. "I do it because I want to, so there's no need to thank me." Her large blue eyes sparkled like twin sapphires making her appear more innocent than usual.

The look in her mother's eyes was almost sickeningly adoring – Kagome barely resisted the urge to retch – and then she turned and left the room, leaving the two of them alone together again.

In the bleak silence, Kagome's thoughts ran haywire, scattering like field-mice in the grass. She realised that she was nervous, still pissed as hell of course, but now the nerves were beginning to overshadow the final vestiges of rage and anger that had been clouding her mind._ What am I supposed to say to her?? I mean, gosh, how do I act? This woman tried to freakin' kill me for Pete's sake! They don't really teach you how to deal with that in social studies class…_

"Problem, Kagome?" Midoriko turned and gave her a sly smile. "You don't look very comfortable – is something the matter?" She opened her hand, flexing out her long fingers slowly before curling them into a tight fist, the small smirk she held turning feral.

Kagome gulped and shook her head, trying not to show just how desperately frightened she was. _Maybe she will kill me!_ She panicked. Just because she had promised not to didn't really mean anything. Besides, she never said anything about not hurting her, and Kagome was all too aware of what kind of things a person could live through without actually dying.

"Are you sure? You look scared to me, dearest…" From out of nowhere came the broad metal of a carving knife, its shiny surface reflecting the yellowed light of the overhead bulbs. Midoriko swished it to and fro, from hand to hand, while humming an eerie tune under her breath. "Come here, Kagome," she murmured, her sweet voice belying the threatening aura surrounding her slim frame. "Come here and I'll help put a smile back on your face."

Kagome was frozen; the yell that she had planned on releasing was caught stuck in her throat, no sound escaping her open mouth. As Midoriko edged nearer, her mind whirred through the various stages in her life that had led to this moment and she found herself wishing she could just go back to another time, away from being helpless and unmoving in death, away from the mad woman that wanted to kill her. The dark priestess was emitting a faint glow; the weapon she held turned a menacing blue as she lunged forward, stabbing it towards her flesh.

"Eeep!" Kagome squealed, quickly shutting her eyes before she was forced to see the stain of crimson blood coating her school shirt. She braced herself for the unbearable agony that was sure to follow from such an injury. That ever-familiar, blinding feeling that engulfed your body so that all you felt was pure _pain_… When she continued to feel nothing however, she peeked through carefully shuttered lids at her surroundings.Kagome blinked, surprised. And also very, very confused.

_I'm not hurt?_

"Huh?" she questioned and then gasped when Midoriko snarled and flicked the point of the blade to the upper left of her chest, directly where her heart lay. Oh God, Kagome thought. This is it…

And then, Midoriko burst into wild laughter.

"Oh, Kamis!" she laughed again, wiping her now flushed-with-mirth cheeks. "That was the best joke ever –Your face! You looked like you were about to empty your bowels out on the floor!" She panted and fell from her seat, somehow still able to retain her perfect grace before continuing to chuckle merrily, holding her cramping sides in an effort to keep her laughter in.

_A joke…_

Kagome was silently fuming, her face red hot with humiliation._ Okay, so we've established that Midoriko's a bitch,_ she thought, her ears blossoming like ripe cherries. But still…what the fuck?!

She supposed she should be relieved that she wasn't about to be randomly murdered in her own home again, but instead all she felt was a cringing, blinding shame, and anger at being made fun of so carelessly. _Not that Midoriko would ever give a damn about my feelings, but honestly who does that!?_

After all, threatening someone with a butcher's knife before announcing to them that it was all a joke, especially when that particular person was only a weak human girl who knew that the knife wielder was in fact a rather unstable personage with a penchant towards bi-polar tendencies close to that of a psychopath…well, that was bound to make anyone either go mad or plain crazy.

But, God she was embarrassed.

Looking at the breathless woman on her kitchen floor, Kagome was hard pressed not to pick up that stupid knife – which was sitting close enough on the table between them – and run her through with it. Just for fun. Even though the chances that she would actually be able to do the evil deed were like zilch, considering that Midoriko had super-human abilities, was pretty damn strong and could probably make her wet herself if she jumped out and cried "Boo!"

"That was by far the most amusing occurrence I've had the fortune of witnessing in an exceedingly long time." Tears like miniscule pearls of dew flecked her thick dark lashes, and she wiped them away with the back of her hand. "I've only ever seen demons look at me with that level of fear before. Never humans." She noted the heavy frown adorning Kagome's face, and her own lips pulled upwards briefly. "Come now, don't be upset. Surely you realise that it was all in jest? I would not have hurt you, Kagome, I gave you my word. A miko's word is sacred. I couldn't go back on my oath even if I wished it." She jumped up from the floor and dusted herself off without help, turning away towards the stove. Her hands deftly tied a brightly coloured apron around her small waist.

"Besides," She flashed her a wide grin. "We have much to talk about, you and I, and as I said before, I can't get the information I want from you if you're dead." She picked up a long spoon and began stirring the pot, peering inside the murky depths for a moment before nodding in satisfaction. "Would you like me to teach you how to cook, Kagome? Your mother has a fondness for strange foods that aren't really to my liking, and she simply refuses to cook anything else." She pursed her lips and raised one delicate finger in contemplation. "Perhaps I should serve a dish that would help change her mind. Octopus should do it – or no, maybe squid."

"You're crazy," Kagome muttered, but she still stood up and came to stand beside the other priestess anyway.

Despite her misgivings, Kagome soon found that spending time with a living legend wasn't as much a trial as she'd thought it would be. In fact, when she wasn't acting like a crazed lunatic or spewing out death threats, Midoriko wasn't too bad of a person.

For a while they just chatted, not really saying anything important, just skimming from several uninteresting topics of conversation. Eventually they ended up discussing each other's lives, questioning things about the other's personal history and background. Kagome was able to explain to her most of the mechanics of the modern time; indoor plumbing, electricity and all the rest of it. In turn the older miko showed her how to make herself useful in the kitchen, teaching her ways to cook an actual meal that didn't singularly consist of chicken noodles. In record time Kagome realised that she was actually having fun, something she hadn't truly experienced in quite a while.

_I guess I really _do_ have a thing for making friends out of old enemies…_

Then, their conversation skittered somewhat, ranging from the marvels of Modern Time to the ever passing memory of the Sengoku Jidai. When that happened, things had been slightly awkward for a moment. Kagome was hesitant to bring up the topic of her time-travelling with the older woman; her wounds had not yet healed and that bruise was far too sore to discuss openly. Midoriko, sensing her distress swiftly changed the subject, and from thereon it wasn't mentioned again.

"But I still can't understand how a girl like you could have been mistaken for a priestess!" They were on slightly dangerous ground now that the subject was directly relevant to her time in the past, yet Kagome felt no qualms about continuing.

"What do you mean 'a girl like me'?" she demanded.

"A weak child with little to no holy powers – that's what I mean."

"Hey," she cried, affronted. "That's pretty harsh don't you think?"

Midoriko snorted. "Well it's the truth. I wouldn't have known you were a priestess if not for Kaede, and even then I was hard pressed to believe. Your power isn't exactly significant."

"Huh, like that's my fault," Kagome crossed her arms over her chest in a childish gesture of offence. "It's not like I have my full abilities, or anything. My soul is still split in half, you know."

"Your soul?" Midoriko sounded curious, and Kagome barely stopped from slapping herself in the forehead. _Way to go, Kagome. Bring out all the hidden secrets of your life, why don't you…_

"Er, yeah, um, you see-" Okay what was she supposed to say now? This was bordering on the stuff she really didn't want to talk about, especially if she had to bring Kikyo into all of this too. Her mind suddenly recalled the way Midoriko had reacted when she'd introduced her to Hojo as her 'Aunt Kikyo'. It had been one of pure shock. Which means she knows who Kikyo is as well, she surmised. So maybe there wouldn't be any harm in telling her.

Still…she decided. It wouldn't exactly be smart to make any rash decisions_. Let's just play it safe first…_

"Alright. Well…um," there was no point stalling. She might as well get it over and done with. She sighed. "You know that I'm from the future right? (_Duh, Kagome, that's pretty obvious_) well basically I was born with the reincarnated soul of a dead priestess from your time, who died around fifty odd years or so before I first went through the well. However two years ago someone found a way to revive her, trying to use her body as a puppet or something. But because I was already alive her corpse couldn't become properly animated without her full soul. Or should I say, _my_ full soul." She exhaled loudly, her breath fanning out in one large whoosh of air. "So long story short, the sorceress' magic spell removed only part of my soul, but it was enough to bring the priestess back from the dead as a sort of walking, breathing corpse. She tried to kill me several times so that she could get it back but that didn't really work out too well. The annoying thing is though, as long as she continues to live like an undead freak, my soul can never be complete again and I can never get access my full powers." She sniffed. "So really, it's not that I'm weak. It's just that I'm handicapped at the moment."

There. She'd managed to get most of the story out without even mentioning Kikyo's name, which was pretty awesome if she did say so herself.

Midoriko's eyes gleamed as she processed this new information. "And you never once thought of killing the priestess to end the threat to your life?" Heavy disbelief clouded her features, as if she couldn't comprehend the thought of anyone actually being that stupid.

Kagome's reply was somewhat muffled. "Well she _was_ super strong…and I'm kind of fragile if you hadn't noticed…"

Midoriko looked amused. "You were too scared of her?" A brief sound of mirth escaped her rouged lips.

"No!" She quickly denied. "I wasn't afraid! I was just… it wasn't quite…" Disgruntled, Kagome turned away so that her burning cheeks were out of sight. "Kikyo has always been more powerful than me, even with only a fraction of her soul back. Plus, she's had loads of training. Years of it. And I really didn't feel like risking my life against her when there were other more important things to risk it for." Like the jewel, her mind supplied for her. Yeah, another internal voice decided to pipe up. And just look how well that turned out.

"True enough I suppose," Midoriko nodded her head in agreement. She pursed her lips. "Although there are still some obvious holes in the story you've told me." She cocked her head at Kagome, one hand firmly gripping the ladle while the other balanced on her hip. "I assume this priestess you mentioned is Kikyo, am I correct?"

_Damn it…_

"Um, yeah." The piercing blue eyes darkened ever so slightly before turning inwards in thought.

"Which means that you are her reincarnate."

"Yes…"

"And yet she still lives. Interesting," Midoriko muttered softly to herself. Then abruptly she fired another question. "What type of spell was it – the one that brought her back from the dead?"

_Where exactly i__s she going with this?_

"I'm not too sure. I was unconscious through pretty much most of it so I didn't get to see what went on." Not that she would have wanted to.

"And were you physically affected when you…."She didn't wait to finish her question. "What am I thinking? Of course you were. I don't even need to ask." She nodded sagely. "Hmm, I suppose that makes sense. Yes…I think I'm beginning to understand now."

Kagome fidgeted uncertainly, torn between speaking and keeping silent. She really wanted to ask what it was that suddenly made sense but she wasn't sure what kind of response she'd receive. Normally she didn't have any problem with speaking her mind but her internal instincts were warning her that it wouldn't be the best course of action right now.

She decided to ask something less controversial instead. "Hey, Midoriko, how come your wounds have healed all of a sudden? When I first found you you were practically a cripple, but now you're okay. I don't get it, was it some kind of spell? Or did you heal yourself?"

"Neither," she replied, drumming her nails upon the countertop. Clearly her focus was still elsewhere.

"Then what was it?" Kagome could practically see the annoyance spiking off the other woman's body in waves, but for once the sign of potential danger didn't bother her.

Midoriko barely spared her a glance. "The jewel obviously. As its creator the jewel has an ingrained ability to protect me, whether it involves healing my wounds or defending me from attack. It works best if in close proximity to my body, however even at a distance its rays have an effect." She snorted, turned away. "It owes me that much at least."

_Weird__…_ "You talk about it as if it's alive," she muttered.

"It is very nearly sentient so that isn't too surprising," she sounded bored. "Though I am beginning to wonder if the drawbacks of having an almost living power source increase over time. When I first passed through the well I had already been healed by the Shikon, but somehow its effects wore off, something that has never yet happened in all my years." A pattern of heavy lines emerged over her lowered brows. "Perhaps it is tired – I have been using it overly frequently these past few months. Some rest should do it good." She smiled brightly at Kagome, "Congratulations, you've successfully managed to divert my thoughts."

When Kagome flushed she smiled a little disparagingly. "Oh I apologise. Was I not supposed to have noticed?"

_Um, no__…_ "It doesn't matter," she scowled, heat rising anew in her cheeks.

Her mouth curved into a tiny sardonic smile. "You must be truly pathetic if that was your best efforts at distracting me."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm hopeless I know." Kagome rolled her eyes, but inwardly she noted that the insult lacked its usual bite. What's eating her? She thought.

"Hey, Midoriko?"

"Mm?"

"What-er, are you thinking about?"

She sighed. "Nothing particularly important."

"Really?" There was a pause. "You can tell me you know, I-um, I won't tell anyone." Inside the safety of her mind she cringed. God, what was she _doing? _They'd barely just started speaking to each other and she was already trying to rock the boat by putting her nose where it didn't belong.

This time the sigh was longer, more drawn out and painful. Midoriko's expression turned dark. "I was thinking about the evil hanyou Naraku."

"Oh." That hadn't been at all what she was expecting. "You know Naraku?"

She could have been imagining it, but Kagome could've sworn that the priestess grimaced. "Yes, I knew him. I was unfortunate enough to cross his path on more than one occasion."

"Hah. Yeah I can sympathise," she replied. And then a few seconds later, "Wait! You said you 'knew' him?" she queried, breathless with sudden hope.

"Yes, I _'knew'_ him. Naraku is no longer in the land of the living." Midoriko replied stonily.

Was that a trace of sadness in her voice? Kagome wondered. No, it couldn't be. That would be just too weird. Midoriko wasn't just a priestess, she was _the_ priestess. Killing evil demons was her job, part of who she was. The thought of her feeling a shred of sympathy towards a demon – Naraku no less – seemed a bit too far-fetched for her mind.

And then the reality of it all came crashing down on her. "Oh my gosh Midoriko!" She gushed, words spilling forth with abandon. "You killed Naraku? That's just- wow, that's amazing, completely _unbelievable_! I can't even, God, I-" She sucked in a whoosh of heavy air, tears pooling in the corner of her eyes. "You don't know what this means to me that he's finally gone. It makes everyone safe – my whole family are safe, thanks to you!" She smiled brilliantly, and then suddenly a thought struck her. "But how? I don't get it. I mean I know you're strong but this was Naraku we're talking about. How did you even-"

"I'd rather not discuss it." She stated coldly. The harshness in her voice stopped Kagome's joyful ramblings in their tracks.

"Um, right. Sorry," she didn't get it but she knew better than to pry at just this moment.

Besides, she thought restlessly, he's gone! He's really gone!

It had been one of the more painful things about going home, she realised. Every day it had eaten a little bit of her heart knowing that her friends and family from the feudal era were still in danger. Thoughts of Naraku returning stronger than ever, ready to kill and destroy the happiness that her friends were planning on making together had terrorised her for weeks. Then they began featuring in her dreams and she couldn't sleep. The fear had kept her up for many a night. _But now…_she couldn't contain the gladness she felt. It eased the mountainous stress that had accumulated over time, and now that she knew Naraku had been defeated she had nothing left to worry about.

Sango, Miroku, Shippo. They'd be fine now that Miroku's wind tunnel was gone. Kohaku had already been saved – Kaede had organised a spell that kept his body in a comatose state when they'd removed the shard; they had only to wait until Naraku's own magic over him had left before he returned back to himself – and Kaede's village was now safe from demonic attentions. Kaede herself would be much relieved that she wouldn't have to rebuild houses anymore, and she could finally start concentrating on being a priestess again. And Inuyasha–

A full body shudder rippled beneath her skin, tingling every nerve from her little pinkie to her toes.

_Inuyasha._

It was pain – the likes of which she hadn't suffered in years and had never since wanted to remember. She felt like her heart was being flayed with a flaming whip, its blaze so fiery as to sear to her very soul. Her stomach churned with rising bile; the urge to vomit heavily was strong.

_Oh God_. She almost cried out, nearly sick with despair. _How had she forgotten?_

He had never loved her; that she had managed to accept. And his heart did not belong to her. The only one who had claim to him had sworn long ago that after Naraku's defeat she would end her miserable life once and for all in the deepest fires of hell.

And he had promised to go with her.

_No__!_ She pushed backed the sob that threatened to spill from her mouth. The muscles of her throat barely worked enough to resist that. _It won't happen! It can't – it won't!_ Denial was the only thing she had left at this point. _I _refuse_ to believe it!_

Her breathing had accelerated, her eyes were wet and she was abruptly aware that she was not alone, that she could not break down now, so suddenly.

Come on, she pleaded with herself. Get your act together, it's not hard!

She continued to chant, repeatedly saying the same words over and over again. Begging herself to forget.

It took only a minute for her charm to work. She cleared her burning throat and blinked back tears. Each miniscule movement of her eyes pushed the wild hysteria at bay. _Deep breaths, one, two, three…_

Finally she exhaled, relieved. She'd regained her composure. Close call, she thought. Way too close. She'd have to be better prepared next time. The thought made her chuckle darkly. It was funny to think that only moments ago she had been ready to cry with joy.

"Kagome?"

She heard her name and immediately rejected it. _I don't want to answer any questions right now. _

Hastily she clapped her hands together; ignoring the curious glance directed her way. "So, Midoriko, is our food ready yet?"

"Yes." Midoriko replied, curt and clipped. "It has been for a while."

"Oh…" she was momentarily stumped. "Then why didn't you say anything?" She demanded.

Midoriko looked down her nose at her – amazing since they were about the same height – and Kagome flushed a bright red. "I tried to tell you several times but you were too…distracted to listen." Clearly she wasn't used to being ignored. "Just lay out the table mats and I'll begin serving the food."

"Okey-dokey!" She forced a cheerful smile, grateful to have something to do.

Midoriko eyed her for a second longer, sniffed and then turned away. "Well don't dawdle. Hurry up about it."

"Roger!"

It took very little time to get everything sorted – Midoriko expertly stacked the dirty pots in the dishwasher like she'd been doing it for years – and Kagome set out the finest china bowls and dishes on a neatly arranged table, decorated with a bowl of sweetly scented flowers in its centre. They even used napkins, five pristinely white embroidered cloths lying immediately opposite the standard pairs of chopsticks.

"Done," she cried triumphantly. She swept her eyes over the room in a final once over before leaping up. "I'll go call them to come eat." She'd barely reached the door when a firm grip on her elbow held her back.

"Wait."

Midoriko turned her around so that they faced one another. "I'd like to ask you something, Kagome, if you don't mind." She said lightly. Her gaze was open and friendly.

Kagome stuttered. "Er…"

Her nerves were back in full flux, cramming her insides with agitated flittering butterflies. She had a strong feeling that she shouldn't say yes; all her mental warnings were practically screaming at her to say no, but the temptation was too strong to resist. Knowing it was a mistake, she nodded. "Shoot. Go ahead."

Glinting white teeth flashed in what Kagome assumed to be a smile; it disappeared far too quickly for her to tell. "Thank you, Kagome. It's nothing to worry about, I assure you. Merely something to satisfy my old woman's curiosity." She flipped her long hair back over her shoulder, the youthful vibrancy of her dark locks belying her previous words.

She began, "You can understand, I'm sure, why I would resent the person who made it possible for my awakening." At Kagome's blank look she explained. "Although I was alive these past centuries, I have not truly lived for hundreds of years, Kagome. My soul and body existed, yes, but I was in sleep – stuck in a magical trance that has preserved me all this time." Her lips quirked upwards but it was too bitter to be a smile. "I thought I'd at last found eternal rest after I finished the jewel, or at least some small illusion of peace in this devilish existence. Clearly I was wrong."Hard edges that had remained previously undetected in her sculpted visage emerged from their hiding places, lining her eyes and lips. "Nevertheless, I entrusted the fully-fledged Shikon No Tama into the hands of my apprentice, Maka, who swore a binding oath to protect it at all costs, with her life if need be. She did so, and from thereon all the apprentices and mikos of Maka's village followed that routine, each one fulfilling their obligation to their dying days." Her gaze turned icy. "Until one of them broke the chain."

Well, Kagome felt dazed, this was certainly interesting news. The mystery of Midoriko's never-ageing body had disturbed her for a while, so it was good to know she wasn't as much of a creep as she'd first thought. Admittedly though, it did give her some small, perverse satisfaction to know that Midoriko wasn't happy. That for all her beauty and power, she still hadn't found something to live for. She's like me, she noted, the realisation shocking her a little. We're both just surviving.

When Midoriko continued she spoke slowly, each word gradually rising off her tongue. "I awoke one day, around five hundred and fifty years ago according to this present time in the future. I felt an odd throbbing within me, a very painful feeling. I realised eventually that it was a warning from the jewel. It was in danger you see, it needed protecting. But I was never its protector." She sighed. "I was too late, the jewel burned into ashes amongst the dead remains of its protector priestess. Until now, I never found out her name."

I know where this is going, Kagome thought dazedly, trying to wrap her mind around the concept. She was both horrified and entranced at this retelling of the story she'd thought she knew so well. The puzzle pieces fell into place and the pattern it made was unfailingly clear. _Is this possible?_ _Could our lives really be so entwined?_

She spoke numbly. "Kikyo was the jewel's Guardian." She knew it. Had known it for years. _So why then did it feel so strange?_

Sparks of anger like azure lightning bolts exploded in Midoriko's eyes. "Yes, but until today I was unaware of this fact. The village where I originally left the jewel was no longer there. Not a single human being had remained. I had no way of discovering what had happened and all my attempts to find out proved ineffective. The villagers were mostly suspicious of me, so they were no help-"

"Hey, hey hey! Hold on a sec," she really hated to interrupt her at such a crucial moment, but this was important, dammit! "So this is the point when I was born with the," she winced, "fake jewel inside of me?"

"That's what I think." Her confidence clearly said that there was no chance she could be wrong.

"So basically, when Kikyo died she took the Shikon No Tama with her, but when I was born, a new one was created to make up for its loss."

Midoriko snorted. "It wasn't much of a replacement. It barely had a tenth of the power the original held."

Kagome ignored this, and tried not to think about the similarities it held with her relationship with Kikyo. "So _anyway_, how did you get the jewel back in the end if she'd burnt it? I thought it'd be lost forever."

"Supposedly, when Kikyo returned from the dead, so did the Shikon No Tama." When Kagome opened her mouth to ask how, she quickly finished the sentence. "The details of it are too complex for me to explain in one sitting. We shall remain here all night if I begin now."

She nodded, agreeing. "Later then." Her gaze turned inquisitive. "You know, you still haven't asked me your question yet." She reminded her.

Like a bulb unexpectedly switching on, Midoriko's entire demeanour changed. Kagome squeaked as Midoriko began to advance steadily forward, her eyes dark, until Kagome's back was pressed firmly against the wall. _What the hell-?_

Her long pale arms fell in on either side of Kagome's head. "My question is this…" She murmured.

The space between them was suddenly taut with invisible flames, heating her body in ways she had never felt before. Unbearably close, they stood face to face, hip to hip, mouth to mouth; Kagome held her breath in the hopes that the miniscule pocket of air between them would not also be devoured in the tension, forcing them even closer.

She barely resisted the urge to flinch away when Midoriko's red lips descended towards her ear. She whispered softly, "Tell me, dear Kagome," her breath was as sweet as honey, cool against the flesh. "_Where is Kikyo_?"

Kagome shivered, unintentionally affected by the deadly tone of voice. Another pulse of red hot _something_ shot through her system like a fast acting drug, dulling her senses and forcing her to take a deep, calming breath.

"I-I don't know, Midoriko. I have no idea where Kikyo has gone to."

"But you must know." Midoriko's stance never changed, she seemed unaffected by their sudden closeness. "The kind of bond that binds the two of you together is far stronger than you are aware of. It's impossible for me to believe that you know nothing of her current whereabouts."

She chuckled uneasily. "I know you don't believe me, but it's true. I don't have a clue where she is, honest!"

Midoriko cocked her head to the side, her bottom lip protruded in an unconscious pout. "You're lying." She frowned.

Kagome spluttered, indignant. "No, I'm not!"

"Yes you are. You must be." She shifted closer, unaware of the discomfort she was causing. "It's not in your best interests to lie to me, child. Believe you me, I will make you talk." She glared. "Tell me the truth now."

"But I am!" Kagome insisted, frustrated. "Don't you get it? _I. Don't. Know. Where. She. Is._ That's all there is to it! Maybe you should go and ask Kaede or something, she would know better than I ever would."

"And why would that be?" She looked sceptical.

Kagome huffed impatiently. "Well duh, Kikyo was her sister. Even when she turned into a crazy person Kaede still kept tabs on her just to make sure that she was safe!"

Midoriko froze.

Her entire body went rigid, her back stiffened mechanically and the darkly burning eyes now flamed with an intense light.

"_What??_" Midoriko hissed. Fury had bled into her voice. "_Sisters?!_ Is this true?" She at once demanded, her sharp gaze lingering all too threateningly upon the younger woman.

Kagome could only nod, as much distressed by this new display of emotion as she had been by the last. Honestly, what _was_ it with this woman? She was starting to think the problem didn't lie so much within the borders of schizophrenia like she'd first imagined, but was angling more towards her being clinically deranged.

Midoriko looked devastated. She said nothing. Her hands, curling like claws, caught the edges of Kagome's much abused school shirt. Slowly she drew her hand away, watching the thin material rip.

Save for that one action, nothing moved. The very air held still in a moment of undue peace. Kagome's eyes closed in appreciation of the forbidden, knowing it was stolen and as fleeting as a bird's song. Her lungs pushed and a light sigh flowed from her mouth. She was briefly and fiercely reminded of the proverbial calm before the storm.

Then the dream-like stillness was interrupted by a high pitched, chilling laugh. Kagome's head whipped up to see Midoriko's face harden; its sharp coldness was at odds with the pink and yellow flower-patterned apron she wore.

"Oh I see now." She said lowly. "Kaede, clever woman. She sent me here to stop me from finding out the truth, so that I would never find know who Kikyo truly was. She knew what I would do to her if we should meet. So she protected her sister, even after all these years." There was no true mirth in her eyes, only the frustration that came from being thwarted, and a fading glimmer of betrayal and hurt. Mostly though, she was consumed by anger.

"I always wondered why she was so unhelpful – so reluctant to divulge what she knew. I never would have thought that she would go so far as to withhold knowledge from _me_."

Her eyes filled with rage, her nostrils flaring outwards. Then without a word, she stepped back, giving Kagome her much needed personal space.

Kagome quickly took advantage of the situation and moved as far away as possible. The back of her arm met with some low cabinets and she stopped in her safe position. She didn't want to be cornered again.

From across the room she spied Midoriko's restless form. For some reason she felt a little bit bad for the maddened priestess, the woman who had dedicated her life to fighting evil and through it all had lost so much. _I pity her…_she reflected, thinking how much of a change her emotions had taken in the past twenty-four hours. Yesterday she had been filled with a jealous, unreasonable sort of fear, closeted by anger and self-righteousness. She had hated Midoriko simply because she saw her for what she was, and for what she herself could never be. The news about the 'fake' jewel was only part of it. Kagome hadn't understood till this instant just how envious she had been.

But now there was a growing understanding. Not too much, but enough for a single thread of trust to develop. Enough that she didn't make a run for her room at this one given opportunity.

Instead she relaxed into her chosen spot and remained standing, watching and waiting for Midoriko to make a move. To show that she was alright. Was that a mistake? She wasn't entirely sure. Only time would tell…

When Midoriko suddenly spoke again it was unexpected. "I will kill Kikyo," she announced to the room.

The loaded tension in that statement was so heavy it prickled painfully against her skin, like rough burrs rubbing rhythmically along her arms and legs. Kagome felt her mouth drop wide open._ Kill Kikyo?! But, b-but why?_

"I will travel back to the feudal period and destroy the priestess Kikyo." Midoriko repeated calmly, as if it was every day she swore death upon another being.

Maybe she does, Kagome thought, frantically trying to organise the mess that was her mind. _Though admittedly it would be much easier to do if I actually understood what in God's name was going on…_

"I'm coming with you." she uttered, the words falling like weighted stones into water.

It was out before she'd even thought it through. _Did I just say that??_ Kagome clapped her hands over her mouth, horrified at the betrayal.

Midoriko only nodded, unsurprised. "Of course. It would be wrong for me to deny you the right of killing her. As much as I would like to do it myself, I will allow you to make the final deathblow. That is yours alone." Her smile was superior, like she was bestowing some kind of priceless gift.

Kagome couldn't speak. Her stomach rolled. _This can't be happening…_

The older woman seemed unaware of her distress. "We will travel as soon as possible. Be prepared to pack your things on the morrow."

That got her talking. She gaped, her nausea fading into anxiety. "That early?! You've gotta be kidding me! There's no way I'll be ready by then. Besides," when Midoriko's brows lowered disapprovingly, "I can't fight her! I'm nowhere near strong enough. If I try now, I'll die for sure!"

Midoriko thought about this for a moment. "You're right." Kagome sighed with relief, but became apprehensive again when Midoriko smiled and continued: "It's true that you would die in battle as you are now – but there is still time to for you to improve." Her grin widened and she looked like she was seriously enjoying herself. "I will teach you."

To Kagome's heartfelt shock, Midoriko got down on one knee before her and lifted her head slowly.

"Higurashi Kagome," She intoned, deadly serious. "I swear to you that in one week, I will make you strong enough to defeat the rogue priestess, Kikyo. Do you accept my offer?" She extended out a hand, palm up, and a bright blue aura swathed her white skin.

What?

Kagome's eyes flicked over her hand. She hesitated. "I-I ..."

Don't take it!! She yelled at herself. The mental screams were as deafening as any physical ones she could produce. Pull yourself together, Kagome! For God's sake, just try and do the sensible thing for once!!

But there was some sort of magnetic pull urging her forward. The same mesmerising, magical draw that she felt from Midoriko every second of every day acted upon her now. She felt dazed, weightless even. The only desire she had left was to reach out and grab the hand that was proffered towards her.

_It's an allure_, she registered, the name coming from one of Kaede's earlier lessons on magical spells and bindings back when she was still whole. _Allure; an interwoven chain of forces linking two people together, whether they willed it or no. _She was aware of its properties even as she succumbed to its power.

Did she even have a choice then? She wondered.

_No_, a voice answered from somewhere far, far away and obediently, her body responded.

Her lips moved around the words despite her inner reluctance. "I accept."

The second she spoke, the enchantment lifted off her and she regained her full senses. Kagome's eyes widened as she fully took in what had just occurred.

"So we'll begin training tomorrow then. Early morning at dawn." Midoriko had a satisfied air about her, almost proud of what she'd done. Kagome was too stunned to even feel angry; it felt like her whole body was fixed in immovable stone.

Midoriko turned and raised one lone finger in admonition. "Be warned however, I am a much better trainer than Mistress Kaede could ever be. I won't go easy on you." This time the malicious pleasure that blossomed on her face was clear as day, and Kagome shuddered fearfully.

_What __have I gotten myself into now?_

She groaned, apprehensive for the upcoming morning. As far as she was concerned, dawn could just take its time in coming.

--

**A/N: ****I am a liar. I said I would update sooner but I didn't. Unfortunately work caught me and it probably will do so again. Although I did make it a good 3,000 words longer if that's any consolation. For anyone still reading this, you have my apologies. **


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